Echoes
by Mach2K
Summary: Zelda and Link are lost in time after a losing battle with Ganon. When they come back after five years, the changes that occurred leave them with no choice but to recoup their losses and fight back. LATER CHAPTERS MAY CONTAIN SENSITIVE EXPLICIT CONTENT.
1. Chapter 1

The reason I noticed him was because of the animals.

The guards noticed it too. Old hounds would drop their well-gnawed soup bones and follow after him. The mousing cats would stop their hunts immediately and pick up the parade, only for their prey to hesitantly follow a moment after. Horses, if able, would follow him; if not, they turned their heads in his direction. As did all manner of tame and wild animals.

It was strange particularly because, while the hounds were known for following the smell of meat, and the horses sugar, the cats would only follow their beady-eyed nemeses, never turning from their tasks, and hissing at those that tried to grant them a loving stroke. And the mice, walking along so close, the cats completely… ignoring them to follow him in his tracks! All manner of birds were reported to circle overhead, doves with hawks, following him with their keen eyes. At night, wolves and owls would linger at his room window, the latter peering in at him, and the former howling at his window in high-pitched, soulful voices.

In the morning, he was ordered, by my decree, to be the first in the long line of gentlemen come to fight for the honor of playing Regent Protector to me. I was only fourteen then, and my father had just died, leaving me as queen to all of Hyrule. He was a farm boy, hardly older than myself, as far as I could tell. I could also see how he shifted nervously, like a horse champing at the bit, looking around in the grand hall at the stern guards, the high stone walls. They made him nervous to be there. I sat in my throne, an ornately carved wooden beauty, polished until it shined like gold, with red velvet cushions for my back and seat. "Who is this that stands before me?" I asked in as imperial of a voice as I could muster. He shifted, unsure if he needed to bow, be on one knee, or what. In the end, he remained standing on both feet, choosing to look at me with those eyes, the sight of which finalized my decision to have this man play Regent Protector.

"My name is Link, Your Majesty."

He came to Hyrule not to compete with the other gentlemen vying for a coveted position, surprisingly. Had no clue yet, in fact, that the king was dead. Hardly surprising to me; the farmers on the farthest reaches of Hyrule rarely knew of any major events within a month of them happening. He came from the southernmost crest, and it showed; his hair was nearly blonde from days in the sun, and his skin was a deep tan color. The eyes, those striking eyes; blue, which wasn't too extraordinary, in my opinion. My own eyes were blue. But it was the way they could focus on a person that startled me. It was the same gaze a hunting dog had when it found the end of a scent trail, or when it noticed the uncovered rabbit. Completely focused, unmoving from their subject. It was a wildness in his eyes. To be honest, it scared me, until I truly got to know him. When he identified a person as no longer being a threat, they softened. But, as I was saying, he came not to win the honor of being my champion.

I knew of the troubles my country was facing; the hardships it was enduring. What would have been a roaring storm passed our country by without a wink. Grass, once lush and green, was trampled and yellow, scratching with brittle leaves for water. Lake Hylia was lower than ever; most of the Zora had headed farther west, following the oceans. He came to the castle to ask that they be spared from the cruel grip of the duke who owned their land. It was a desperate move, asking me to take back land the duke paid taxes on, land they rented from him.

"Things are gettin' tight around home with th' drought, Your Majesty, an' I don't know how much longer we can last." I was looking not at him as he spoke, but rather at the cat twining around his ankles. It was an old grey tom, named Butcher. He was sire to many of the other mousing cats, large savage animals that killed in the night and ate their prey quickly. Butcher had his name from the curious way he dispatched the mice and rats, though I don't know how he performed it, as the handmaids and guards that'd seen him at work felt it was too horrific of a subject to share with me. It also came from what he'd done to one silly new scullery maid's hand when she tried to stroke him, though she was warned. So, to see our most savage mouser purring and butting his head against the farm boy's ankles, well, there was something most mysterious about this young man. I looked up when I realized he'd finished speaking, a bit embarrassed. "Ah, yes, I'll see what I can do. What is the name of the duke in question?" Out of the corner of my eye, I could vaguely recognize Butcher sitting down and meowing at Link in a gravelly cat voice, purring and butting his head into the offered palm.

Link was speaking, and my secretary of estate was writing it down, but I could hardly hear him. Finally, I stood up. Link shut his mouth, the guards flinched and grew wary. All the while, Butcher was mewling and purring.

"Guards! Bring me that cat." Link stepped back, Butcher stepped forward- a guard picked Butcher up, who rewarded him with a furious hiss and yowl, his ears folded back. Cautiously the guard approached with the cat held outstretched. I reached out to pet him, and was dually rewarded with a furious swipe across the hand and a high-pitched, almost screaming yowl. Butcher was dropped, and he hid himself behind Link's ankles as the guard went to punish the tom with a quick smack on the nose.

"Don't," I commanded. A thin stripe of blood had grown along the scratch in my hand, and I let a maid quickly wrap some bandage around it for the time being. "Link, what exactly is it that you do on this farm?" He shifted uneasily. "I'm the horse master, your majesty."

"Anything else?"

"Well, em… No, not much, your majesty."

I studied him for a few minutes. He was shy, and I found I liked that; he was also polite and clean for a farm boy. And he was quite humble. Plus, there was still the matter of the animals' attraction to him; that could be very important.

"How would you feel of living in the castle?" His eyes widened. They were like an animal's even more so now- the wariness of a frightened deer. "I uh… never considered it, your majesty." I chewed at one nail. The guards looked at me suspiciously. "You see, Link, I have a bit of a… conundrum. My father, Goddesses rest his soul, has recently passed on. While he was alive, he was never able to assist me in finding a Regent Protector." He looked confused here, and I explained further. A Regent Protector was essentially the guardian of a young princess's virtue, if her father passed on before she was betrothed. The Regent Protector is also usually the princess' escort to balls and ceremonies, so they were usually quite well-bred, handsome men. There are still all sorts of terribly inappropriate half-rupee dreadfuls about the relations between Regent Protectors and their princesses. It was never intended to incite any illicit affairs- in fact, most kings chose far older or already-married men to trail their daughters. But I didn't choose Link out of girlish whimsy. He was strong, he was humble, he was honest. These factors alone drew me to him.

"So, I suppose now, we must formally ask you. Master Link, would you do us the honor of serving as Regent Protector to the queen?"

"Well… um, your majesty, I'd be honored." What else could he say?

Link settled rather easily into the role of Regent Protector. His sword skills were a little subpar, which was no surprise. What use would a farm boy have for swords? But he learned quickly enough, that was the good thing. Guards showed him the grounds, tutors for etiquette came in to help show him how to dance, speak, all the little necessities that would help to cloak his rather low beginnings, though he never did manage to understand which fork went to which meal.

His parents were informed, and sent a monthly stipend, which was more than enough for their rent on the farmland. The duke that was bleeding them dry was threatened with an audit of his yearly finances in comparison to what he took from the families renting his land, and he loosened his grip dramatically on the little farms after that.

The drought was still choking the land, however, and with no end in sight. Rebellions cropped up now and again, difficult to dampen. Whole fields of grain toasted in the sun until useless. Hyrule needed relief, but the goddesses weren't listening. Many joked that they were going to move in with the Gerudo women, as the desert was colder. I felt helpless, and spent most of my time in my tower rooms with the windows open to the cool breezes, which were few and far in between. We needed a miracle of a storm, at any price.

When the storms did come, it was wholly unexpected. That morning, there was a haze, thick as cream poured over the grounds. My shift had become a second skin, my hair matted to my own neck with sweat. Guards were forever carting around massive water bladders on their duties, as their armor and underclothes formed a stifling hot prison, they were prone to fainting without. I allowed my clothes to be removed by my handmaid, and a thorough sponge bath before she applied a cottony dress with short sleeves. Another shift, but it was formal enough and thick enough to get away with wearing in public. Ten minutes into the new clothes, I could already feel the hot prickle of sweat starting between my shoulder blades. I gritted my teeth and wore as little makeup as possible for facing the day.

Link met me on the stairs halfway down to the great hall, where the tile floors were flooded with cool water at night. The servants wore special-made shoes to prevent slipping, or they went barefoot to splash in the water for some relief. He wore little formal clothing as well, loose pants and a bell-sleeved tunic. His hair, so long and disheveled when we first met, was now clipped and combed back from his face, accentuating his cheekbones and those blazing, wild eyes. I greeted him as formally as I dared, and he bowed clumsily in return, still shy of his proper place. "Did you sleep well?" I asked him as we headed to the main throne room, where I would receive the daily reports. He nodded. "Y… yes, my lady. Quite well." I nodded. There were still reports of hearing wolves outside near his tower, and the guards never managed to catch them. Cautiously, I paused at a window and dared to push it open, gasping and recoiling from the heat that rolled in like an avalanche, shutting the window with difficulty. We finally made it to the main hall, where scouts were waiting patiently, drinking out of enormous pitchers of water, red-faced and sweaty. I sat down at my throne and folded my hands in my lap as the first scout came forward. "Your majesty, the Zora apologize for their retreat towards the ocean. As it is-"

A deep rumbling growl from the sky interrupted him. I noticed the light streaming through the windows grow dim, and I looked at Link, confused. "What was that?" His eyes seemed to glow with promise. "Thunder, my lady." The court people that heard him looked on in doubt, a few running outside, only to come back shouting about the grey and green sky. I stood up, my eyes wide. Lightning split the sky like a snake's forked tongue, a sizzling purple color, and the roar of thunder made the very castle shake, I could swear it still to this day. And then the water came. It was as if the goddesses took up all of the wide ocean in their arms and slowly poured it over the country. The maids scrambled throughout the castle to try and shut the windows tight; a few of the scullery maids had escaped outside to dance in the rain, laughing and screaming with happiness.

Link and I looked at each other in surprise. Neither of us could quite believe that this was happening. I ran to a window and pushed it open, sticking my head out with wide eyes. Raindrops the size of peach pits _thwock_ed on the ground and my hair, almost hurting. Lightning continue to whip itself across the sky, white and purple, while the thunder bellowed like an angry mountain beast. "Well," I could only comment with some relief, "at least that is taken care of." But in the end, we'd wish the rains had never come.

The reason I noticed him was because of the weather.

When he walked, his black cape flicked and flowed on the breeze, and deep, black storm clouds followed. When the cloak was removed, the clouds stayed, lingering and growling their threats, making the air dry and sticky, but never breaking. Shocking, this, that a man seemed to have the sort of control that belonged properly in the goddesses' hands. Though to infer that the goddesses were the ones who would soak our beloved country in a rain so strong as to cause flash floods down Death Mountain almost seems to paint them as malevolent. His presence was almost their absence. Flowers closed when he came near, grass withered until he was gone. The very air seemed to shrink back from him, a man cloaked in a stench of evil.

How I came to know him was that my international affairs ambassador died, in mysterious circumstances. To lose two great men in so short a time- less than six months! The country was reeling from the news. First, of the dead king, second, of the flash floods ravaging Kakariko, nestled at the very base of Death Mountain, and with little protection, and finally this. I needed to appoint a new one, a man that I trusted beyond reason of a doubt. This man certainly wasn't one of them- I didn't even know him!

I put off having to encounter him for as many days as possible without running out his patience. Those that I interviewed were longtime friends of my father, men who had held me on their knee when I was a child. Many of them also remembered my mother, who died giving birth to me. But one after another, something happened to interrupt these fine upstanding men from taking their place as a newly appointed position. A death in their families, a tragedy of other proportions, undiscovered debts of some sort. Strange little things along these lines made them fall out one after another, until the only choice was this malevolent figure in black, red hair and evil eyes, grinning like a cat with the cream. "Your father and I go way back, your majesty," he said, down on one knee, a smile on his face. I did not know this man- how could my father have? "He and I attended church and school together; we grew up with the same education and the same exposure to many of the details of Hylian life." I studied the embroidery on his clothes, thinking I had found a loophole.

"But you are a Gerudo, are you not? How could you be said to have attended the same schooling as my father?" He chuckled. "Your Majesty, surely you realize that I was sent to the very best of schools, same as the late king? As a rarity to the Gerudo, I was to have the greatest learning we could manage." I nodded reluctantly, unable to hide the frown on my face. "I'm sorry to say that my father never spoke of you, Master…"

"Ganondorf, Your Majesty."


	2. Chapter 2

I put off selecting an ambassador as long as I humanly could, scrambling desperately for any other qualified men to come forward, but none did. This was impossible. How could it be that when I needed assistance out of a royal formality, I was swamped with offers, but when I needed a key member of my ruling court, the well of generosity and duty to the royal family dried up?

The rains continued on in a torrent, until I found myself stupidly wishing that the sun would come back and we could return to the sweltering heat. Farms were losing crops to being washed away, and the homes around Lake Hylia were having the ground washed out from under them. There was little we could do to help beyond filling bags with sand from the desert and trying to pile them between the houses and the rising lake. The farms were getting paid a bounty for what crop they could salvage, but it was still a lower sum they were gaining than what they could have gotten before. So again, they were suffering.

Even though I rarely saw him, I knew it was hurting Link for him to worry about his family. Finally, one day, I sent him to go see his home and to ensure that his family was thriving. He actually seemed offended at my suggestion. "My lady, my family will manage. I send them a portion of my wages every month for necessities. It is not them I am worried about, but the other farming families of this region." I knew what he meant- I shared the same fears. This was no way to begin my dynasty. "What would you suggest we do?" When we did meet, we talked like this. He was my connection to the less fortunate of Hyrule, the people that were actually this country's backbone and best economic support. "I…" he frowned. "My lady, if you insist on giving them some sort of payment for their suffering, you can't make it actually look like a handout. You have to make it seem like this was something they were getting regardless of the rains. Like a tariff break or something."

So, I lowered the taxes on the farming families, and increased them on the safer of the well-to-do, specifically the ones that lived farther inland and weren't at risk of losing their homes to the torrents of water, citing emergency taxes to provide for those less fortunate. To the farming families, the excess return in funds was quoted as compensation for the lost crops, due to an 'act of the goddesses' clause written in our land's charter.

One morning, I woke up feeling particularly surly. It was my cycles, I knew. There was a pain like a bruise in my stomach, and every minor thing irritated me. I abstained from sending any correspondence that morning, lest my mood swings stain the words I was trying to pen down. The rains were worse than ever. Older windows in some of the higher towers had started to leak, and were shuttered closed. Nervous scouts were reporting that the Gerudo were refusing to share any more of their sand for holding the rising waters at bay, the Zora were not returning from their distant home, and the Gorons had completely retreated inside of Death Mountain to avoid the constant mudslides.

The people of Kakariko had lost most of their homes, and moved into the castle grounds, staying at the many taverns, crowding them, with many families cramped into large rooms. I covered my face with my hands and started to cry bitterly when a scout informed me that a fire had broken out in one of the inns late at night, killing several dozen families and injuring a few more. I wanted out, to get away from dealing with all these troubles for a while.

I retreated to my rooms, kicking harmless items, stamping my feet, throwing the pillows from my bed around and screaming with frustration, screaming at my father, for daring to leave me at such an inopportune time. I even dared to curse the goddesses for taking him from me so soon, and leaving me with such a heavy burden.

A knock on the door interrupted my tantrum, and savagely I commanded the knocker to enter. It was that snake of a man, Ganondorf. He smiled at me kindly, and I invited him to sit down, taking a seat myself. "What can I do for you?" Ganondorf cleared his throat and leaned back. When I wasn't on the throne, and with him so close, I realized how huge and imposing his figure was. "Your majesty, I understand you have been placed with a heavy burden since your father's death. I know he would not want to see you suffer, and I beseech you to allow me to help take some of that heavy burden away."

I put my hand on my forehead; there was an angry throb starting in the very center, a headache that would soon put me down with its rage. "Please, my lady Zelda. Appoint me ambassador, and I will help to ease your troubles." I stared at my desk. It could really be that easy- I would have assistance ruling this land until I found a suitable husband, not that I'd been looking. "I…" he was pleading with me with those eyes like fire, something greedy in them. I wish I'd took better notice of that fact before I made the worst decision I would ever make. "Very well."

The rains had finally slowed and trickled to a stop, and for the first time in a few months, the sun came out. The air remained cold, however; we were well into fall. But Hyrule was not going to cease any celebrations of the ended rains; oh no. Balls cropped up like wildflowers, and my own maidservants gently prodded me to hold some of my own, to 'get some use out of your handsome regent', as they put it so tactlessly. I let them 'convince' me this way. After all, I was a young woman who still needed a husband, and the only way to find that was by holding grand balls with which to locate him out of the throngs.

Ganondorf stayed mostly quiet and out of sight. He was constantly off on 'business', either at Death Mountain, Lake Hylia, or Gerudo. I never minded this- he did frequently send reports on his progress of building levees around the lake or testing the structural safety of the mountain trails, and I hated the way the room seemed to get colder when he was around. And when he did come into the room, Link always had some excuse to abruptly leave, which bothered me. His eyes would take on a cold, hateful look when Ganondorf walked in, and any animals that had gathered around his ankles would run off. Not back to their tasks, but as if they were fleeing from danger.

It was at a harvest ball, the celebration of Farore and her boundless fertility that gave birth to Hyrule, where I was finally able to corner Link and demand of him why he despised the ambassador so. Honestly, I just wanted to see if his reactions were similar to my own, and I suspected they were. I took two glasses of candy-sweet wine to the head of the table where we sat, Link brooding and stroking a molly cat that laid purring on his lap. I must confess that I had a bit of a fancy for him at this point as well- he was resplendent in autumn tones- tan breeches, brown deerskin boots, and a dark brown tunic embroidered with gold over an ivory chemise. I sighed and offered him a glass, sitting down next to him in my own chair, dressed to match in a dark brown dress of sumptuous damask, with gold stitching and my own antique underdress. Link stared into the pink liquid, sniffing it cautiously before taking a sip, the cat in his spell regarding me with gold eyes.

"Ah… what a nice soiree, don't you think?" I turned my head and smiled at him, but Link was frowning into his drink. "Yes my lady, it is very nice." I poked his shoulder with one finger, which made him jump, and the cat abruptly hopped from his lap. "Sorry," I waved one hand, already feeling good and warm from the drinks I'd had before this current glass.

"Link, there is something that has been bothering me about you. Every time ambassador Ganondorf enters the room, you turn tail and run!" He narrowed his eyes; evidently being called a coward was more of an insult than I intended. "My lady, you may not like what I have to say on the matter, so you must swear to me to keep it an utmost secret." I nodded, sobering up with the seriousness of his tone. "Of course, of course."

Link heaved a sigh. "My lady, he fills me with dread. When he enters the room, I can feel my blood go cold. And you have seen, I take it, how the animals react to his presence. If I try to comfort them while he is around, they hiss and scratch at me as if I am a stranger." I knew that the animals ran, but I did not know this other fact. I frowned and finished my glass, setting it down on the table with a harder thunk than I thought. "Do you think I did the right thing appointing him? It seems to have helped in some ways. The rains have stopped pouring, the people are recovering…" Link shook his head slowly. "To be honest, your majesty, I'd rather we were still in a drought, if it meant he would not have the power he has." I flinched at his words, watching Link stand up as if he planned to retire for the night. "Link…" I stopped him with a hand on his arm, my face pleading with desperation. "What else was I supposed to do?" Link sighed, putting a warm hand on my shoulder. He was warmer even than the alcohol swimming in my system. "Have more courage, my lady." And with that, he left me alone at the table.

How was I supposed to have courage? My kingdom needed me and I could not provide for them as I wished. It was insufferable; I almost felt as if I were forced into handing over power to Ganondorf, as if a woman could not handle running the country on her own. Link and I did not speak for some time after the autumn ball. I figured he was mad at me for not being courageous enough, and I wanted time to plan my next move for the country. Regretfully, I spent most of my time on my own, either out in the gardens or soaking in a warm bath, trying to clear my head. At least the farms were thriving now; fields were being prepared for the sleep of winter, as was my own castle. Ganondorf stayed mostly out of sight as usual, which started to concern me. Surely he had reports to turn in to me? Some sort of progressive plan to further unite the inhabitants of Hyrule and its coasts? I noticed from his budget that money was being used for something; contracts to construction crews of some sort. It was easy to tell myself at first that he was helping to rebuild Kakariko, install some sort of safety barricade against any potential avalanches later on, help to reconstruct ground under coastal homes and things of that nature. But I wasn't convinced, and I needed someone else to put a rest to my fears.

When I could no longer stand the silence that laid between us like a wall, I approached Link's room in the middle of the day, knocking firmly on the doors. There was silence, then a low voice bid me "Come in."

He sat at the window in a loose tunic and breeches, getting up and bowing when I entered, leaving the door wide open behind me. "Hello, your majesty," he murmured to the ground. "Don't do that," I replied, shaking my head. He straightened and fixed me with his feral eyes. I folded my arms and looked away. When I wanted to be angry, I couldn't look at him. His eyes unnerved me. "I have some concerns." "Yes?" "About… Ganondorf." I dared to look at him. Those wild eyes had hardened briefly, and he nodded in agreement, before offering me a chair at the small table where he was served breakfast and tea, sitting in the other chair and leaning forward to listen. "Go on." So, we talked.

I'm ashamed to say that I had reservations about talking to Link at first. He was from the country; didn't even know the difference between a salad fork and an entrée fork when he first arrived! So how could I imagine that he would be able to understand my fears? But as I spoke, he nodded in the right places, and asked questions that showed he was really hearing me. "He's spending lots of money…"

"Yes."

"But you don't know what on, and why."

"Precisely."

Link sighed and sat back. "I'll check it out." This disrupted my train of thought entirely. "Wha- what? No! Link, he's a very dangerous man, I can't have you snooping about and risking your life-" And damn it all, he fixed me with those eyes. "Zelda, I will be alright. I'm just going to poke around a little, check some things out. I'll be safe." I fidgeted in my chair with a frown. "How do I know for certain you'll come back?" He smiled easily. "You have my word."


	3. Chapter 3

Link disembarked the next morning, early. The sun was barely up, and to the west, the sky was still grey. A thin frost coated every blade of grass. I watched from my tower room as he and his horse trudged off through the cold, equipped with a wool cloak for the bitter night and a few other items for safety and defense. He packed them himself, I have no idea what he took.

Without him, the castle seemed colder, larger. I read books I'd already read, replied with polite rejections to suitors, crossing their names off a long list I'd started to compile. At night I could almost hear my father clucking his tongue at me in disapproval; I was supposed to choose a husband for the good of Hyrule! And there were many such men!

In Link's absence, Ganondorf abruptly returned, staying around the castle. He spent most of his time in the library, reading through the ruling history and charters. Ganondorf had not lied on that account- he was a very learned man, and could go through dozens of pages in a quarter of an hour. He became more open and friendly with me, and I felt shamed for how suspicious I'd been of him, returning the favor. One day, he asked to go on a walk with me out in the gardens, and I agreed.

We walked together through the faded brown rose trellises. The gardens weren't in a very favorable state, seeing as winter was fast approaching, but I wanted to get out and stretch my legs. "So, Ganondorf, I'm aware that you have some… construction projects in the distant cities." It was a bit tactless, I admit, but I knew of no other way to approach the subject. He cleared his throat and nodded, managing to look sheepish. "Yes, your majesty. I'm having the coastlines rebuilt to add stability to the houses, helping to reform Kakariko's houses and buildings, and other repairs that were caused by the torrential storms." I nodded. "That is good. I am only disappointed you acted on this without informing me or anyone else." I turned to look at him sternly, feeling my heart quiver instead. Ganondorf smiled, and that was a truly scary thing. "Your majesty, I was acting on behalf of the land of Hyrule. I felt at the time it would have been an absolute nightmare to go through a screening process. Besides, I know the men at task on the construction, and I trust them. Is that not good enough for you?" To myself, I thought _No, because I hardly trust you at all_. But to his face, I offered a stern look. "I still would have appreciated advance warning, Ganondorf. Please do not make a mistake like that again." "Of course not, your majesty. You have my word."

Unfortunately, after this confrontation, something set off a chain reaction of tragedies throughout the kingdom. A plague, blossoming from a bad water source, swept through the Zora people. It killed their weak and old, and disabled the strong. Their skin was covered in a filmy white fungus, they lost their color, and some of them were going blind. Dodongos started cropping up as a nuisance against the Gorons, but they'd gotten bigger and meaner, and much faster. Link was still pulling a disappearing act, and I was frustrated. He hadn't even sent a letter or anything to let me know how he was doing. For all I knew, he'd been robbed and murdered, but that seemed the least likely of his fates. Heavy snowstorms rolled in, blanketing Hyrule with a thick layer of white. The windows were shut and sealed for the winter.

At night, the main gate was raised to prevent ice from the half-solid moat forming on it and ruining the wood. It was an awful night in particular this time. The clouds bringing in the blizzard were thunderheads. I couldn't help but worry if Link was warm enough, or had enough to eat. I sat at one of the narrow windows facing south, the direction he'd headed, wearing heavy velvet clothes to keep warm, a fire going in the hearth. I watched as lightning licked its way across the sky, purple like the storms we'd had in the summer. Groaning, I folded my arms on the windowsill and rested my chin on them, looking down into a snow. Before my eyes, another crack of lightning flashed, this time with the deafening roar of thunder a minute after. The lightning had struck a tree in the Lost Woods, and I stared as a thin plume of smoke rose up over the branches. My heartbeat started to quicken, and my eyes widened. The scattered clouds of smoke were soon joined by a flickering red glow, and I left my room, running. "Fire!" I shouted. "Fire in the Lost Woods!" My guards turned and looked at me in surprise. "The Lost Woods? How can you tell?" I realized I probably sounded insane; the woods was thick as the blanket of snow on the ground. I smoothed my dress, giving my hands something to do. "I saw lightning strike, and there is smoke rising from the trees." The guards shifted nervously.

"Well, no offense, your majesty, but what are we supposed to do?"

"The woods are probably wet enough from snow that it wouldn't be too much of a problem."

A maid brought me hot tea, and I thanked her. "I'm just worried; Link has been gone for ages. What if he's injured or trapped in the woods?"

"Why would he be in the Lost Woods, your majesty?" It was Ganondorf, walking up casually, a bit of a knowing smirk on his face. I wheeled to face him, my face stern. "I…"

"As far as I know, the Lost Woods is uninhabited by anything but giant spiders and wolves. Even the Kokiri have been found to be a myth." He was rubbing his chin, still walking towards me, and I found myself backing up. "What would a protector of a princess' _virtue_ be doing so far away from her?" He chuckled. "Who will protect you from the hounds, princess?" I lifted my chin, trying to find the courage Link told me to have. "I do not appreciate your rude tone, Ganondorf. It would be best if you held your tongue, before your insults go too far." He nodded his head. "Fair enough." And then he turned toward the windows, gazing out of them towards the woods. "I wonder… is that wood wet enough to not burn?" He turned and walked away, heading back to his rooms, I presumed. I realized then that I was trapped in the castle with him, and Link was shut out.

I retired to my rooms for the night, but I did not sleep. Instead I paced, keeping an eye on the distant cloudy image of the Lost Woods. The fire wasn't going out, but it wasn't getting bigger. A small mercy from the goddesses. I did not sleep until it was far later, when the blizzard had begun to subside, and the sky to reluctantly brighten. And even then my dreams were troubled and full of metaphor. In them, dark clouds constantly broiled in the sky. I was in the middle of a large field, trapped in a gold cage studded with diamonds and blood-red rubies. Outside of my cage, a massive black boar was pacing in circles against a wolf with the bluest eyes I'd ever seen. They weren't fighting, just pacing and staring each other down. The boar let out a squeal that plummeted in pitch until it was a roar, and the wolf howled in response. I woke up screaming.

I got dressed as fast as I could with my hands shaking, pulling on a thick cloak against the cold and making my way downstairs, intending for the stables and my horse. I could put up with this no longer; I was going to find Link. A servant corralled me halfway to the stables, out in the snow, dressed hurriedly in mittens and boots. "Your majesty! What are you doing?!"

"I'm going to find my regent!" I shouted in reply, trembling all over.

"Please, your majesty! Don't do this! You'll be leaving us alone in that castle with…" She bit her lip. "At least appoint someone to act in your place before going!"

"The only person I'd be able to appoint would be my ambassador," I hissed in reply, facing the older girl. Her face was terrified. "He is the only one with enough rights by our charters to make decisions in my name." We stared at each other in horror. I was stalemated to stay. With a shudder of helplessness, I walked back inside with the servant, letting myself cry. I could always say that the sniffling was from the cold.

Bitter, I sat on my throne. Very few scouts were in attendance, as few were being sent out to face the cold. I offered them hot soup and tea to raise their spirits and warm their noses before hearing their reports. "The smoldering fire in the Lost Woods has only continued, your majesty. It has been spreading slowly to other trees, from what we can tell, and the smoke is starting to chase out some of the wild animals that live there. There is no sign of Master Link having been in the woods." I nodded numbly. The next scout came up, clearing his throat. "The Zora princess, Ruto, humbly requests aid from the kingdom for her people. Not only has the fungus not been beaten back, but a few people who were once healthy have died from it, it is getting stronger. And she also offers you a personal message." I nodded and the scout came forward, handing me a thin blue scroll that shimmered in the light, tied with ropy seaweed and sealed with wax. I tucked it into a fold in my skirts, intending to read it alone in my rooms. "What other news do you have for me?" The last scout stepped forward, clearing his throat nervously. "The Goron leader Darunia offers thanks for your aid in Kakariko village, but they have some concerns as to the changes being made in their rock mines to eliminate Dodongos. They report that the problem has actually been getting worse-" he stopped when I straightened, my eyes bright. "Continue, please." "The… problem has been getting worse." I frowned. "V… very well." The scout stepped forward with a thin, brittle stone, its entire front covered in wax. "They also offer a private message for you, as does the leader of the Kakariko village." He also handed me a paper scroll, sealed similar to the one from the Zora princess. My skirts were quite full with all these private messages, and I distrusted how they were still handed to me in a rather open area. I would have to find a way of communicating in private with the respective leaders. The scouts looked as if they wanted to go linger by the fire with more soup, so I bid them leave and took my private messages up to my rooms.

The first message I opened was the one from Ruto; the rock from Darunia was propped up in the fire to melt the wax off his message. What I read caused me alarm.

"Your Majesty Zelda,

I hope this letter finds you in excellent health, for the grim news that it contains would only cause harm to healing. It may not be my place to say it, but I disapprove of the ambassador you appointed. He has no regard for me or my people, choosing to ignore us as he continues to build temples on our land. I am insulted; I was unaware there were plans to take our land to build any temples!

From what I have seen of it, the inside is a labyrinth, with trapdoors, puzzles, and mechanisms that lock a room closed once someone enters, and a secret passage for the builders to leave the room by. I cannot help but wonder what sort of madness this must be, and due to the respect our fathers shared, I refuse to believe that this is at all your plan.

Miraculously, I have been able to ward off the ich that is slaughtering my people, and the good Zora doctor is working on a cure, but it is not to be found. I tell you this in private, to share with no one else- I believe that temple is to be responsible for our woes, and any other troubles you might have can surely be linked back to buildings Ganondorf has put up.

You do not have to respond to this message, it has been risky enough to get it to you in secrecy. Just heed my advice and find a new ambassador!

Yours,

Princess Ruto"

The message from Darunia, once the wax had melted and the rock had cooled, was much of the same.

"Dear your majesty,

I respectfully request to know what in blazes your ambassador thinks he's doin putting foreign buildings on our land, telling us they're temples to ward off bad luck and the Dodongo. Puh! He's using up our best rocks for the entrance, which is larger than our great hall! Characters I never saw before are constantly streaming in an out of the building, attacking anyone that gets close to investigate. I believe the damn thing actually extends into the very heart of the mountain, deep in the lava. What the hell sorta temple needs to lay in the belly of an active volcano! Your father was a great man, so I have reason to doubt you're entirely behind this! There's something about that man, something that's pure evil. Watch your back.

Sincerely,

Darunia"

Finally, I opened the last message with trembling hands.

"Your Majesty,

I would first like to thank you for aiding our town in its time of need during the floods. What you did for us was greatly appreciated, and helped to save most of the town. But I have some concerns about the temple being built in the back of the graveyard. When the ground was first broken, there was released a horrible stench, and as they continued digging, they uncovered a pit under the dirt, filled with torches and evil-looking symbols carved into rocks. But the crew hired by your man Ganondorf did not seem to care; they cleared out the rocks and torches, and continued digging. Forgive me if I sound like a superstitious person, but it does not seem right to build a holy place overtop of an evil foundation. Would you advise your men to this concern? They did not listen to me.

Yours,

Mutoh."

I set the letters down and managed to rise shakily to my feet, stumbling to my chamber pot and heaving into it everything I'd eaten that day. When I finished, I got a glass of water to rinse out my mouth, spitting the remaining bile into the chamber pot, before collapsing in a chair with fresh tears in my eyes. What was this horrible man doing to my country? How had I lost control of Hyrule so quickly and easily? And what in the hell was he planning to do with it? I forced myself to my feet and stumbled to the velvet pullcord to summon a maid to clear the chamber pot, sitting down on my bed and laying against the pillows, trying to clear my mind and focus, to meditate. It was not working this time. It felt as if someone had laid a heavy blanket over my mind, trapping me in it. Was this his doing as well? What power did this man have to do such things? I covered my face with my hands and took deep, slow breaths into them, trying to get myself back under control. I nearly had it until the door opened. Good, my chambermaid- it was Ganondorf, smiling. "I noticed you pulled your cord; I thought I'd come up here myself and see what was troubling you." He glanced briefly to the secret letters on my desk, and I got up to sweep them into a drawer. "Oh, just a touch of upset stomach, Ganondorf. Nothing to bother yourself over." I watched him intently, willing him to leave. He stayed, walking around the room slowly. "Your majesty, permit me to be bold; some of the court is concerned that you have not found yourself a king yet."

"I respect the court's concerns, but I will find a proper king to rule Hyrule when it is time," I replied curtly, willing him to the damned door. Ganondorf chuckled. "Surely it can't be that hard; you just have to think of where your best interests are, your majesty." He cleared his throat. "You need a king who is personable, who understands different points of view on all matters and the people they concern." I could feel suspicion building in my chest, and I studied him with a frown. "What are you suggesting?"

"I suggest, of course, myself, your majesty."

"No. No, no, that is right out- I will not marry you." For a horrifying second, his face contorted with fury. He was starting to realize I was not the easily-manipulated little girl he'd hoped me to be. Ganondorf cleared his throat and laughed. "Why not? It would not be a marriage out of love, your majesty. It's a marriage out of necessity, for the good of the future of Hyrule. Surely that's all your father ever wanted, isn't it?" He stepped close to me, putting his heavy hands on my shoulders. I turned my head away from his face. "Master Ganondorf, I hardly think that my father was intending a king of thieves to lead his people as well, if you'll pardon the expression." I dared to look at him; he was pale with rage. "I will NOT pardon an insult, Zelda!" He bared his teeth. "What will it take to make you see, you foolish girl, that I am an excellent candidate for the throne! That I deserve that position! Have you not heard what I have done for your people already?!"

"Yes, Ganondorf, I have heard, and I know what you are doing! What are these temples you're constructing?" He backed off and laughed. "They're temples, your majesty, nothing more." It was eerie, how quickly he snapped back to complacency. I shook my head. "I will not marry you." He smiled coldly, going to the door. "We'll see."


	4. Chapter 4

Just as before, when he was denied, Ganondorf started to bend fate to his way. My suitors started to drop out like flies. Sometimes it was eloping, sometimes it was a tragedy like death, but usually they just failed to respond to my invitations for a visit. Ganondorf was trapping me tighter and tighter in his clutches; this I could tell. I spent most of my time alone in my rooms, chewing my fingernails nervously. I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep; I couldn't even see the scouts in the morning. Small clumps of my hair started to fall out with stress. And still, nothing from Link. Not even a whisper. Though they still reported that wolves lingered outside of where his room was. One night, when the snow was a blanket, I headed outside wrapped in my warmest cloak, walking the perimeter of the castle to the base of the tower that held Link's rooms. Sure enough, several wolves sat in the snow, looking up at the window. I approached cautiously, swallowing. They were wild animals, and Link was not here to charm them. The closest one looked at me, then back to the window, as casually as a person in a crowd. I dared to get closer. When one started to howl, the others picked up the noise. It was a beautiful sort of music, sad and longing. I stood in the snow and cried my worries away. I would not be able to find any husband but Ganondorf, I was trapped into giving him my country, I'd lost everything my father had protected in less than six bloody months, and now-

It dawned on me. It was an imperfect plan, but there might be a way to send Ganondorf away for at least a few weeks. In that time I would be able to contact the other leaders for an impromptu meeting. I turned and shuffled back through the snow as quickly as I could, a grin on my face, the first one I'd had in months.

In the morning, I was washed up, fed a good breakfast, and ate well. My hair was combed and put into a relaxed, wavy style, swept back off my face. A bit informal, but I wanted it to be. I put on a heavy jacquard dress, studded with seed pearls at the collar, before I walked down to my throne, more imperial than ever, and sat down at it with my hands neatly folded. "Summon Master Ganondorf, please, and the records of his employment." The books were brought to me, and Ganondorf came in with that grin on his face as if he'd won, until he saw the books in my hands. "How may I assist you, your majesty?" I held up one hand to tell him to wait as I studied the book for a few minutes, insuring that I found what I was looking for. "Master Ganondorf, as a reward for your noble work in Kakariko Village and elsewhere during the floods, I grant you a three-week vacation, to begin immediately." I smiled sweetly at the scowling man. "Your majesty, I thank you, but I wish not to abandon my duties at this crucial time."

"What's crucial about it? It's the middle of winter, good sir; any rain will settle to the earth as harmless snow. I insist."

He bared his teeth in a poor smile. "I would rather not, your majesty."

I sighed and shook my head. "Then I'm afraid I must command you to take a three-week paid rest from your duties, as you have steadily worked the past six months without rest, not even breaking on the midweek resting day." He stared at me, and I returned it with a sweet smile. He knew his protocols- unless there was an emergency, he absolutely had to take a three week leave from court. "…. Very well," he muttered, bowing his head. "I shall leave tomorrow morning." "Oh nonsense, I imagine you'd like to start regaining your rest as soon as possible. We can have everything packed for you to go today." My eyes glittered as I stared at him, triumph on my face.

Within the hour, Ganondorf's belongings were packed, and he glared at me from the back of a carriage as the horses trundled off. As soon as he was out of sight, the gloomy skies cleared, and the sun peeked out, making the snow dazzle like diamonds. I relaxed and slumped into my throne. "Good people," I called. My servants turned to me expectantly. "I believe that you are all due for a break of your own, do you agree?" I heard a few gasps of excitement, and I smiled. "Rest on your chores for the day. Tell the cooks such as well; we will have a simple meal for dinner tonight, if it does not interrupt their plans." A few maids ran to spread the word, and I sat up, smiling at my people. After all, they were being held just as terrified by Ganondorf's presence.

I watched from a window in the plant solarium as two scullery maids played out in the snow, throwing big clumps of it at each other. I wished I was as carefree as them in this moment; I had to plot further methods of keeping Ganondorf away, and also find Link. Funny; I was but fourteen years, and I felt older than most of the people serving me. It explained why my father's hair was so pale, though he was hardly in his thirties.

With a sigh, I left and retreated once more to my rooms, sitting at my desk. I was intending to immediately write to Ruto or Darunia, any of the leaders, but I sat staring out my window, the quill hanging in my hand over a piece of fresh paper. All was silent in the room but for a soft scratching noise; possibly a tapestry blowing in a stray wind against the stone walls. As I gazed towards the Lost Woods, I could see that the column of smoke had dissipated; the fire had gone out, smothered under snow. I stood and moved to the window instead, resting my arms on the sill and looking out at the white wonderland. In my peripheral vision, something dark moved towards the castle. I jerked my head sharply and stared in wide-eyed amazement. It was Link, trudging back to the castle.

I was dressed entirely wrong for the cold. My boots were undone, I wore no woolen tights with them. My cloak was fastened, but not quite securely, and the hood hung free on my back, my lips chapping in the wind. Link's horse looked exhausted, old. She was tired of trudging through the snow, ready to collapse. Link looked strange. It took me a few minutes to realize that he was paler than he should've been. A thin scar was on his cheek, and his once-immaculate hair was disheveled and hung in his eyes. I stopped where I was, looking him over in shock.

"Link?" I asked softly. He turned his head and looked at me as if he didn't even know I was there. "My lady," he replied faintly, his face breaking into a sheepish grin. He helped me up onto the horse, sitting behind him, and I wrapped my arms around his waist as he clumsily led his steed to the stables, where the ranch hands scrambled to get the horse inside and warming up. I walked with Link back to the castle, and even though they had leave not to, the servants rushed for warm bowls of water, clean towels, and mugs of hot chocolate. A guard helped half-carry Link to his rooms up the stairs, his legs numb with cold, and settled him into his bed. I sat down at a chair by the bedside, looking him over with worry on my face. "Link." He seemed rather put out at being trapped in bed, but said nothing on that score, turning instead to face me with his eyes. I'd missed them.

"Yes, your majesty?"

I thought my words over carefully, licking my lips. "I have good news. I sent Ganondorf away for the next three weeks." He smiled at me. "Small miracle, that." How I'd missed that smile! I waited patiently until he had something warm in his belly, me constantly wringing my hands. Finally, he sat up a little further in bed, folding his hands together in his lap. "What did you see?" I asked him immediately, my eyes wide. Link turned his head. "I went first to Kakariko Village and Death Mountain. They're messes, my lady. The… the people there look haunted, taken over by ghosts." I thought of the letter I'd gotten from Kakariko, about the foul stench from the broken earth and the pit of evil. "Did you see the temple there?" Link nodded slowly. "I could understand very little of it; the main room looked easy enough, but there were other rooms being constructed beyond it, going deep underground." There was a tightening in my chest as he told me what he'd seen. "What of.." I struggled to think. "Did you get a good look at the construction crews?" He nodded reluctantly. "They were… well, they were dressed like men, and they looked like men, but they moved wrong; as if they were wearing heavy clothes on their bodies. They couldn't move properly. Ganondorf was overlooking them. I think he saw me, but he said nothing."

"And the other temples?" I hated to tax him; he looked exhausted from his journey. I much rather would've let him sleep.

"More of the same; crews of strange men, doing some invisible task. Though, at Death Mountain, one night I heard a roar."

"A roar?"

"Yes, as if they'd woken something."

My mind flashed to all the fairy tales my nurses had told me as a child; particularly one of a fiery dragon that lived in the heart of Death Mountain. But those were fairy tales. It could've been anything.

"Did you go into the Lost Woods at all?" I asked, looking at him. He reluctantly shook his head. "I saw no need to, my lady." I sighed and leaned back in my chair, my eyes closed. "Link, Ganondorf has intentions of marrying me to become king. I have no doubt he would happily poison me as soon as he gained control of the country." Link frowned. "I will not let him." He was not saying it out of duty- this much I knew. He was saying it because he meant it. "I know. But I don't think it's a matter of 'letting' him. If he wants something, he will just take it." The regent protector shifted with a frown. "But… if you pardon me asking something so atrocious, why would he settle for marrying you? Why not simply kill you?" I studied Link's face with a frown. "Because if he kills me… he wouldn't be able to send you away." I knew it as surely as I knew my own name in an instant. "If I was murdered, you would be given a home on palace grounds and a continual monthly stipend, unless our arrangement was broken beforehand." Link frowned. "Why exactly is that?" I shifted uncomfortably. "Well; a regent protector is assigned until a princess' engagement." Link nodded. "If the princess dies before becoming engaged, the regent is to go into mourning, almost as if he was a widower, and he continues to receive his pay and benefits for up to five years, or until the princess would have turned eighteen if he was with her before then."

"So I'd be on the grounds for an additional four years."

"Yes."

"And we can presume it would delay Ganondorf's plans for takeover with me around." "Yes."

"But why? I'm just a regent; surely I can't have any say against the king."

"I… I don't quite know that." I sighed, worry heavy on my heart. Link reached his left hand towards mine, and I took it with my own left. We sat like that for several minutes, but not of our own choosing. An electric current held us tightly together, and I could hear a high-pitched humming sound. It was the goddesses. They were talking to us.


	5. Chapter 5

"My lady." Link sat up when our shared vision was over, his eyes hard. I looked at him, holding my left hand in my right, having snatched it away as soon as I was able. The back of it was imbued with the symbol of the holy triforce, and the lower left corner, the one that represented wisdom, seemed brighter than the other two. Link was studying his own hand; the lower right corner was bright on his. He met my eyes and I nodded; I'd seen everything that happened, past and future, Ganon's endless assault on Hyrule. I drew a shuddery breath and stood up, smoothing my skirts with my hands. "I…" What could I say? Little flickers of things that had happened or could be continued running through my head. Link licked his lips with a little frown. "It's the will of the goddesses that we have to fight this evil," I murmured. Link nodded. That was why I'd chosen Link. Because I already knew him, and he me. We'd known each other for millennia without knowing it. "Those temples… they're unholy places. They're places of evil." I could see the hardships some distant incarnation of Link would have to face in the temples; fighting creatures that varied from savage ghosts to himself. "He will not stop until he has Hyrule," I whispered. "He will stop at nothing; not even death can hold him back." Then I was slipping back, farther and farther. Warm hands were on my shoulders, propping me up at a strange angle. "Your majesty!" a small voice shouted from miles away. Then a strange, tingling sensation in my cheek that exploded to pain. Had... had Link just dared to slap me? But I was grateful, it rose me from my faint. "Thank you," I murmured in a low voice. He nodded; he knew exactly what was going through my head. "Then, if Ganondorf is the last of our triangle… do you suppose he now remembers everything?" I raised my eyes to study Link's face. Those wild eyes were hard. "I imagine he might, your majesty; or he might need to… connect with one of us to regain them, as we had." I nodded. Finally, I was able to stand up straight, and I stared down at my hands. "I should head back to my rooms." Link nodded. "We will talk more on this in the morning, my lady." I smiled in response and walked out, heading quickly back to my own rooms, still reeling at everything I'd… experienced in the past… well, what time was it anyway? My castle was rather quiet, and the lighting seemed dark for morning, which was when Link had arrived. I headed down into the main hall to cross to my own rooms, a servant stopping at her task and bowing. "What time is it?" I asked of her.

"Tis ten o'clock, my lady."

"Impossible; Link was found to arrive at ten thirty!"

"Beggin' your pardon, but you misheard me- it's ten o'clock at night." I stared at the servant in shock. How long had we been communing with the goddesses? The servant shifted nervously, shyly. "If you grant me leave, your majesty…"

"Yes, sorry, return to your tasks." I continued on to my room, feeling dazed. When I entered, I stood near the door, unsure, before moving to my desk to write down what the goddesses had told me, lest I forget. I sat down and looked for paper, jumping and making a quick scream of fright. The soft scratching sound from earlier was not a tapestry in a breeze- I'd drawn a fearsome beast bearing down on two little spots of light, the entire paper blotted black from soft yellow, my quill tip ragged and the ink bottle nearly empty.

I slept deeply, but I did not enjoy it. My rest was plagued with nightmares of things I could not understand, full of people I did not know. I groaned and twitched in my tortured sleep, frequently calling out 'No!' My guards entered several times to ensure I was safe, and every time they found me writhing in the bed, soaked in sweat and panicking, but they were unable to wake me up. When I did wake up of my own accord, it was early morning. The sky was still dark. I'd been having a torturous nightmare of being possessed by Ganondorf, my body used to attack Link over and over again, and Link, furious, had no choice but to strike me with the Master Sword.

The Master Sword. Link's birthright. It was hidden inside the temple of time, sealed behind a massive stone door that only opened for the legendary Hero of Hyrule. It could not be forced open, nor tricked. It obeyed only his command. I wanted to test this.

I pulled on a cloak and fastened it around my throat, putting on warm boots and lacing them up properly. As quietly as I could, I left my bedroom. The guards to either side of my door were asleep; I hoped they did not do this while Ganondorf was around. I continued down the stairs with stealth, holding my breath and managing to leave the castle with relative ease. And now to actually get to the temple! It was situated outside of the castle, down the quiet western path of the marketplace, near a few small parishes where the monks who tended the temple lived. I pulled open one of the heavy doors and walked inside, looking around. It was a huge, towering hall with cathedral ceilings and tall pillars. The main walkway led to a little altar, with rows of pews to either side for sitting and praying quietly to the goddesses. I approached the altar. It was a statue of marble and gold, the image of the three goddesses supporting the triforce on their outstretched hands. Whoever had carved it had done an impressive job; flame seemed to lick and curl around Din's strong arms, her hands pressed flat against the triforce of power. Nayru's hair flowed like a river behind her, curling and twisting, the triforce of wisdom barely on her fingertips. Farore's figure was stocky, her belly round and full as if with child. The triforce lay flat, so that donations could be placed on it; I put down several coins on both the triforce of courage and wisdom, and looked at the massive wall beyond the altar. It held a huge tapestry that was stretched across the wall depicting the family crest and the triforce in the very center. I stared longingly at it, my hands clasped together. "Please, goddesses. Tell me what is right." I closed my eyes and waited. But if they were going to speak to me, it was not to happen here. "So, this is it?" a voice asked from behind me. I wheeled around in terror, sighing when I saw it was Link. "Goddesses! You frightened me!"

"I'm sorry, your majesty." He walked forward, wearing his own heavy cloak and looking up at the tapestry after studying the marble statue. "The temple of time," he murmured softly. "Home to the Master Sword and the entrance of the Sacred Realm." I nodded. We both turned and looked at the tapestry. "So how, exactly, do we get the Master Sword?" I shook my head. "I'm not sure."

I watched as Link walked up to the tapestry, studying it, before pulling it back and looking behind it. "Nothing," he called, turning away. He walked back over to me and held out his left hand. "We seem to commune with them when we… well, when we touch." I nodded. "It wouldn't hurt to try." He pressed the palm of his left hand against mine, and we both closed our eyes. A warm beam of light enveloped us, and once again we could hear the goddesses speaking. Link moved away from me, walking a specific path through the white, and holding his left hand up. There was a deep, shuddering, cracking sound, and then the slow, tortured scraping of stone against stone. I gasped and opened my eyes. The vision was gone, but the horrendous scraping was still audible. Link grabbed me as I started to fall backwards in a fainting spell, and helped me to sit down in one of the pews. "I'll return in a moment, your majesty." I nodded weakly, feeling pale and shakey. Link walked back over to the tapestry and peered behind it again before stepping back there- and then he was gone! Not a lump or anything!

He came back in a few minutes though, his eyes wide. "Your majesty- do you feel well enough?" I nodded and stood, walking over to him. He pulled the tapestry aside. The wall had split somehow, and beyond it was a little tunnel. We both walked through into a massive round room with a tall pedestal bearing a sword that glowed in the moonlight coming from stain glass windows. I looked back through the tunnel, but faced the back of the tapestry. Link walked up to the pedestal and wrapped one firm hand around the sword's handle, taking a deep breath. "Are you going to pull it out?" I asked in amazement. He looked back at me. "Yeah. Why not? We need it to defeat him, don't-" He stared past me and his eyes widened, and I turned around. Ganondorf stood there with a grin sprawled across his face, his eyes wild and mad. The back of his left hand shimmered with the triforce. "Well now!" he called out, chuckling maliciously. "Isn't this a happy meeting?"

"Link! Pull out the sword!" I turned back around with panic in my face. Link's eyes darted between me and Ganondorf, who was advancing further in to the room. "Link! Pull it out NOW!" I was screaming, my hands clutched to my chest. Link wheeled back and got his grip on the sword and started to heave. Ganondorf grabbed me from behind, his hand clutching my hair and forcing me to bare my neck, the other arm wrapped possessively across my body and the hand attached to it holding a dagger to my throat. I let out a broken sob. "Pull it free, boy, and she dies!" Link turned and stared at us both again. Tears streamed down my face as I stared pleadingly at Link. Ganondorf was heaving with rage, waiting for Link to make his decision. Morbid curiosity wished him to pull the sword free though, just to see if Ganondorf would really do it. "If I die, you won't get my triforce," I babbled nonsensically. "Your majesty-"

"Can it, boy! Let her speak!" He turned to stare into my face, eyes full of hatred. "How can you possibly say that with any certainty?" I was shaking in his grasp. "I have spoken to the goddesses. They have told me that those that possess a piece of the triforce are born with it. When they die, it leaves them to find a new vessel. If you kill me, you will have to find the possessor of the triforce all over again. Every… everything that you have struggled through to get to where you are now will be all for naught."

"WHAT do you know about MY struggles?!" he roared in my face. "Nothing!" I replied in a panic. "But th-that you have had them! And to have them be in vain now would be worse than anything you could bear!" Ganondorf slowly loosened his grip on my hair. Link's hands still clenched the sword pommel tight, watching us. "Yes…" he murmured, lowering the dagger just a bit. "It would be… very difficult, to find you two again. How long I have searched for… the both of you," he muttered, stroking my cheek with one finger. Link looked over at me, and I managed, carefully, to nod. Slowly, he released his grip on the sword and stepped back. I could feel my heart pounding in my ears. We did not know what removing the Master Sword of its pedestal could do. If it sent us ahead in time, or into the Sacred Realm; we might as well just hand the triforce over. It was safer to do this without him around.

Slowly, Ganondorf let me go, and I was able to straighten back up. But he was still brandishing that dagger, and I eyed it warily. "I will spare both of your lives, then." Link relaxed, closing his eyes. "What's the catch?" was my immediate response. I stared Ganondorf down, my arms folded, trying to summon up some of the bravery I felt when Link was around. He was frowning. "Link must be banished from the castle." Link immediately wheeled around and grabbed the sword pommel again. "Like hell if I'll listen to a terrorist's demands!" he shouted. "Link, NO!" He grunted, dying to pull the sword free and slay Ganon, ending our troubles. Ganon sighed angrily; I could see a vein pulsing in his forehead. His dearest wish was to kill us both, I knew that. But I also knew how long he'd been working for this moment, and I could play it against him. "Fine, then. Link is… banished from the castle."

"Zelda, what the bloody hell-"

"We demand that you hold your tongue!" I hated using the imperial honorific, but I felt as if I had no choice in the matter. Link was going to argue with me about it until we were both out of breath, and that would do us no good. "What else?" I asked reluctantly, looking at Ganon. He lifted his chin. "We are to be wed." I winced and turned my head away. I feared he would say that. Ganon glowered at me, Link staring at the two of us with wide eyes. "You must not touch me," I murmured. Ganondorf snorted. "Why? Oh… is it because the marriage would be easy to annul if we don't consummate it?" He shook his head. I clenched and unclenched my fists. Link was staring at me still. I felt trapped, like I didn't have a choice. "If you touch me I will kill myself," I replied in a harsh whisper, staring at him furiously. Ganondorf frowned. Link wanted to protest my declaration of suicide; I could almost feel him opening his mouth to argue against it behind my back, but I ignored him. "Fair enough," the evil man replied coolly. I noticed as he reached to shake hands with me that he was sticking his left palm forward. "No." I stuck my right hand forward with a steely glare. He would not trick me into taking him to see the goddesses this way. He chuckled and shook his head. "I see that I can't get much past you, princess." We shook hands. I turned and faced Link, my eyes full of tears. He shook his head. "Zelda, you can't let him do this."

"I have to, Link. I have to protect my people." He looked past me and shouted in anger. I wheeled around. Ganon was lunging with his left hand for mine. I shouted in panic and turned back towards Link. Link jumped, bringing the Master Sword with him. It sang as it was freed of its pedestal, and I reached out to grab his hand tight. A blinding light flooded the windows, more shooting straight up out of the pedestal. I jerked against him as we were pulled up into the light, as if borne on the rapids of the Hylian River. Something brushed my foot, but we were gone.

Everything went black.


	6. Chapter 6

I woke up gasping and sucking for air, sitting up. The air around me was cold, and I laid on a gold pedestal, supported by an ever-flowing pillar of water. Link was next to me, still out cold. He held the Master Sword tightly with his left hand. I looked around and jumped to see… myself?

"Hello, Zelda."

I did not hear the voice so much as feel it; three tones at once ringing in my head. It sounded like ringing bells. My… doppelganger smiled softly.

"We are The Three Goddesses."

I nodded slowly.

"We chose this form, as it would be easy to recognize."

"Could you please take a different one? It is a little eerie to see myself." The Goddesses nodded. "Who would you like us to be?"

I thought for a few minutes, looking at my lap. "My mother." They nodded and subtly changed. Taller, darker hair, and an open, innocent face.

"Is this better?"

"Yes, thank you."

I stood up and looked around the large, empty space that went on forever and ever. "Where is this place?"

"This is the Sacred Realm. The point at which we left Hyrule after its creation."

"How did we get here?"

"The Hero of Hyrule freed the Master Sword from its pedestal, opening the portal and bringing you here, as you were both touching the sword with your left hands." Dimly, I could remember doing just that—reaching for Link with my fingertips on the pommel to get away from Ganondorf. "How long have I been here?" The Goddesses tilted their head. "There is no concept of time in the Sacred Realm. If you mean in earthly hours, it could be anywhere from a few minutes to years." Years. I sat down slowly, my eyes wide, sinking to my knees. The Goddesses waited in silence, watching me. "So… was Ganondorf left behind then?" They nodded. "So… if it's been years, he would've taken over Hyrule by now, and…" They nodded again. "Father, I have failed you," I whispered, putting my face in my hands and sobbing. "No you didn't," murmured a voice next to my ear. It was Link, and I wanted to look at him, but I couldn't stop sobbing. He put an arm around my shoulders and squeezed me against his chest in a hug. The Goddesses waited still, until I was done mourning my failure. I sniffed and dried my eyes with my fingers. "Sorry…" They nodded sympathetically. "Zelda. You must go back. You can take back your kingdom. It has been done before, it can be done again." I nodded with belief. "Link. You must aid her. Power is not the topmost triforce because it is the best. It relies on wisdom and courage to be supported, to even exist. Wisdom cannot support power alone." Link nodded, and the Goddesses beamed at both of us. "Ganon does not know it yet, but he needs you both to complete himself. Without you, he has nothing to balance upon." They straightened, and held out both of their hands, palms upward. "I will send you back now, to your own time. Right now you are as you were when you came here. You might find this is not the same when you return." We both nodded. "Very well!" The Goddesses called, their voice taking on a new thunder. They raised their arms high, and started to glow like a star, brighter and brighter until I could no longer look at them.

When the light started to fade, I opened my eyes. I wished I hadn't, though. We were back in the temple of time, alright- or what was left of it. Someone or something had apparently hated the building's beautiful architecture and torn it down. The room we were in was open to the night sky, the stars shining dully past a smoky haze. I stood up and looked around, my jaw agape. The rest of the building was crumbled to bits and pieces, the pews broken, burned, or simply missing. The statue of the goddesses was smashed apart entirely. I looked down at myself, and jolted. It must've been quite a while since we were in Hyrule; my body was longer and fuller in all the womanly places. I was still in the ill-fitting clothes I'd run to the temple in. The dress fit far too tightly, and the seams were stretched. I turned back and looked at Link, who'd gotten up. He was in much the same predicament, his hair long and raggedy, his jaw firm. I buckled my cloak across my body to hide its… advancements, and turned back to Link completely. "How long do you think we've been gone?" I asked him softly. He shook his head. "Not sure, your majesty."

"Probably shouldn't call me that anymore," I muttered with a little frown.

"Why not?" was his casual reply. "You're still the queen."

"I don't feel like it." We picked our way through the rubble. The tapestry was gone, long burned or something. Funnily enough, the doors were still standing, and in perfect condition. We went around them instead, through gaping holes in the walls. The market was much of the same. Buildings were destroyed, things were burned, statues and monuments were smashed to pieces. My first instinct was to see what had happened to the castle, my home, and I headed that way. "My lady, I wouldn't go that way." I turned and frowned. "Why not?" He pointed beyond my shoulder to the main walkway of the castle. There was now a towering wrought iron gate blocking its way, with two menacing guards in complete suits of armor standing before it. Link pulled me back with his hands on my shoulders, turning me towards the way out of the castle marketplace entirely. We crept along in silence, occasionally knocking around small bits of gravel and broken statue. The fountain that continually flowed in the main market was not doing so now. The water that was in its bowl was green with algae. "Where are all the people?" I whispered through my tears. Link shook his head. "I know not, my lady." We finally managed to escape, out into the main fields of Hyrule. Giant lizards wielding swords and shields crept about, and Link kept one arm protectively in front of me. "There needs to be a faster way to travel," I muttered to him with a frown. "And a safer way." I didn't mean to cause offense, but I had no weapon, and I knew Link would have a hard enough time trying to protect himself. "I'll see what I can do, my lady." We crawled back towards the castle on the outside of the walls, Link staring ever ahead. I could see the distant woods. Surprisingly, they didn't look much changed. Sure, the closest trees were dead or dying, grey and covered with horrific spider webs the size of rugs. But there was still a good green sort of smell emanating from them. The grass underfoot was patchy and yellow, littered with bones. I tried not to think about whether they belonged to animal or man. Link stopped abruptly, his hand on my shoulder. He whistled low, a soft tune I didn't recognize. We waited for several minutes, but nothing happened. His face fell. "She must be trapped somewhere," he muttered. She? "My horse," he explained. I nodded with a frown. Link continued sneaking with me, occasionally looking up. I could see dark shapes circling, silhouetted in the night sky. He whistled a different, low tune, and one of the dark shapes slowly swooped down, getting bigger. It was an owl, with huge eyes and two funny shapes on top of its head, almost like cat's ears. Link held out one arm and the owl alighted. He turned with his arm outstretched, giving the owl a little push. It flapped into the air, circling low over the grounds until it was a dark speck against the sky. "Hopefully he'll find the horse for us," Link muttered. He turned and faced the woods. "My lady, I hope that you are not too fond of warm beds, because we may go without them for a long while." I smiled sadly.

"If we ever get them again."

"Of course we will, my lady." I was starting to wish he'd quit calling me that. There was a tone in his voice that indicated a closeness with the way he said it. I cleared my throat and lifted my chin. "Well, what shall we do?" Link turned and looked into the woods. "How are your shoes?" I looked down at the winter boots that were making my feet sweat. "Good enough." Link nodded and led me towards the woods.

We crashed through the first layer of dead flora, Link brandishing his sword high. Massive spiders skittered right at us, hissing and chattering massive jaws. Link's sword lessons had paid off impeccably well; he leapt into the fray and shouted in defiance as he parried and thrusted, felling the massive beasts. I was horrified- was this all Ganon's doing? It had to be.

How long had we communed with the Goddesses? How much real time had flickered by as I babbled like a fool? Could I have saved the town faster if I had just leapt into the fray? I would never know the answers. But we were here now, and the Goddesses assured us it was not too late. But I was finding it hard to believe. How could it not be too late? My kingdom was torn asunder, and someone else was in control.

Link was breathing hard, his hair clinging to his face with sweat. He scratched it back out of his eyes with one hand. His face was spattered with green, foul-looking blood, as were his ill-fitting clothes. He looked at me and nodded his head once. "Let's continue on, my lady." I nodded and followed him deeper into the thick cluster of trees and foliage. "Do you know where you're going?" I asked timidly. "Yes." If I looked to my left, I could barely see the ruined castle beyond the woods. It made a good focusing point for our bearings.

Link pulled me in deeper, with a small frown on his face. "Link, what are you trying to do?" I dared to ask. He squeezed my hand to silence me. Soon, we stepped into a wide clearing, with knee-high, springy grass. "We should be safe enough here for the night," he murmured to me, taking off his cloak and laying it out over the ground. The clearing was dimly lit by the moon, and I could make out the shape of Link pulling his old sword from his hilt and placing the Master Sword there instead. He studied his old sword critically, lended from the castle, and handed it over. "Here you are. For protection." I took it from him with one hand, gasping as I was pulled down with the sudden weight. Link chuckled. "It's going to be quite heavy until you're used to it." I nodded and lifted it with a frown of concentration. I managed to hold it almost at chest level until I had to drop it again; my arms were sore from the heft. "Usually, heavy lifting isn't part of the queen's duties," I tried to joke with a weak smile. Link nodded in understanding. "Try practicing with it for a little while."

He lingered at the edge of the clearing, gathering up sticks and cracking them over his knee to test for wetness. I lifted the sword with both hands, hacking and slashing at an ancient, dead-looking tree, trying to reach some sort of competence. I'd had archery, and was good with a bow and arrow, but not sword-fighting. Not only was archery quite noble, but it kept a person in relative safety, flinging arrows great distances. Sword-fighting could be noble too, I supposed to myself. When sweat was heavy on my brow and I could no longer move my arms, I turned to see that Link was making an effort on a small fire. He had gathered some mushrooms as well, and looked briefly up at me. "Your arms are going to hurt in the morning, I recommend stretching them." I nodded and did what I felt were good enough exercises as he took back his old sword, laying the mushrooms carefully along the blade and balancing it across the fire so they would roast on the hot metal. I lifted my chin and stared at the sky through the thick tree branches. "I don't feel safe creeping about at night. I don't know what traps and things he would have laid out." Link murmured to his sword. I lowered my head and looked at him. "I understand that."

"We'd be easier to see during the day, but so would he."

I nodded. "That's fine with me." He plucked a mushroom off the sword and bounced it around in his palm, blowing on it before popping it in his mouth. I followed suit, surprised at how hot the little morsels were. They were delicious too, and a comfort that something so good could still be found in this place. When we finished our sad little meal, I found I was hungrier than before, but we had no choice in the matter. Link stretched out his legs next to the fire, keeping both swords on either side of him. "Take some rest, my lady," he murmured as he looked back at me. "I'll keep watch for the night." I nodded and climbed onto his cloak that he'd spread out on the grass, huddling into a ball inside of my own and closing my eyes. The woods around us was quiet, with the occasional twittering of a night bird or low, growling croak of a frog. I fell asleep and dreamed.


	7. Chapter 7

I woke up and realized just how inadequate my stretches yesterday had been. My shoulders and back ached as if I'd been dragging two stones the size of my head around on our travels. My stomach snarled and growled its displeasure louder than I'd ever heard, and I felt as dirty and foul as the pigs I'd seen once at a festival. Technically, I'd been wearing all the same clothes for years, and it felt like it. Link was still awake when I rose. His eyes were red-rimmed, and he looked as if he wished to sleep. I could not blame him. "Tomorrow, I will keep watch." I assured him. He shook his head. "I would not be a very good Regent Protector if I did not do so, my lady." I sighed and stood up, tightening my cloak around my body. Link heaped dirt over the fire pit to help smother the embers, standing up and removing his sheath. "Here, my lady." I put the sheath on and he slid his old sword into it, sticking the Master Sword into his belt. It seemed to glow gold in the early morning sun, and I stared at it as if hypnotized for a few minutes, until Link grabbed my shoulder and gave it a gentle shake. "Let's continue, my lady." I nodded, a bit embarrassed. We crept back out of the woods towards the ruins of the castle. In the daylight, it looked even worse, as the destruction was far more visible. There was a perpetual smoky haze in the air, and I looked toward Death Mountain, shocked to see it belching a column of black ash, looking as if it wanted to erupt. Link looked where I did and shook his head.

"It's that temple. Wherever he built one, it's corrupting the goodness of the earth."

"It's terrible," I murmured sadly. Link nodded his agreement, and we trudged up to the castle. He whistled, and the owl from last night swooped down from the flock overhead, hooting softly in his ear. Link nodded and the bird took off from his arm, flapping out over the castle remains and hovering in one spot. "Alright. My horse is in there; having her will make our travels much easier."

"You're going in there?!" I replied in panic.

Link looked at me strangely. "Of course."

"But Link, it's dangerous, you might get killed!"

"I'll survive, your majesty. I promise." He smiled at me and we crossed the splintered draw bridge back into the market place. "If you wish, you can stay by the fountain; I shouldn't be long."

"I wouldn't feel too comfortable with that, to be honest." I replied quietly. The last thing I wanted now was to be alone. Link nodded. "Ah… how comfortable do you feel with that sword?" "Not very." He nodded and reached under his shield, revealing a quiver of arrows and a bow I hadn't noticed before. "I presume you know archery." I smiled. "Yes."

"Alright then. Stay behind me, and keep an arrow notched, but leave the string loose." I nodded eagerly, shrugging the quiver on and holding the bow comfortably. I kept close to him as we practically crept our way to the castle gates. He sighed in frustration when we saw the distant guards, licking his lips and stroking the pommel of the Master Sword. "You're a good shot, right?" I set my jaw. "Yes."

"Okay." He hunched down, stroking his chin and thinking. "Alright. I want you to fire an arrow past them and through the gate, so that it distracts them. Once they start looking around, I'm going to run up and charge them with my sword. Now, there's two of them, so I'll need you to help by staying back and firing arrows at weak spots. Back of the knee and leg would be best. When they're down, come forward and stay close to me." I nodded. "Well, my lady. Fire away." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. I stood and pulled the string taut, focusing on the thin iron bars, firing the arrow between the helms of the two guards. They hardly seemed to notice. "Bloody…" Link shook his head. "Give me the next arrow." I handed it to him, and he pulled out a flash bomb, frowning. "Do you need to tie that to the arrow?" I guessed. He nodded. I crouched down and tore off the bottom tattered strip of my skirt, handing it to him. He hesitated, stroking the material with his thumb before tying the bomb to the next arrow and handing it to me. "Fire away."

I held my breath as I shot the arrow. Unfortunately, this strike was terrible. It hit one of the guards in the shoulder, going off with a loud bang! and a flash of light. They stood dazed for a few minutes, rubbing at their eyes, before they looked up and spied us both. Link pulled the Master Sword from his belt. "Get behind me, your majesty!" I pulled out my own weapon, brandishing it as the guards charged us in heavy, clanking armor, wielding huge swords. Link pushed me back with his arm, and I fell over, landing hard as a sword narrowly missed slicing my head off. I yelped and rolled away as the guard swung downward, intending to cleave me in two, I suppose. Link engaged the other guard, knocking him back defensively. He kept glancing back to me though. I forced myself to get up with a growl, raising the sword above my head to deflect the next blow. It came down with far more force than I anticipated, and I was knocked to the ground again. Link wheeled around and struck the guard in the back of the helmet with the flat of his blade, giving a battle cry of anger.

The guard instantly forgot me and refocused his anger on Link. I forced myself on my feet again, stepping back and instantly firing an arrow. It hit the guard on his plated shoulder, but he ignored me to bear down on Link. A holler of pain that could only be Link's voice; the guards never said a word. I fired another arrow, sinking it into the back of a guard's thigh. Now _he _hollered and reached back to free the offending object. I wasted no time and fired an arrow at his hands. It wasn't the greatest idea. The arrow only flicked off the iron plate over his knuckles. He looked up at me, and I could see angry glowing eyes under the armor.

Link grunted and shouted, "Yah!" as he plunged his sword into his enemy's throat, wheeling and smacking at the leather ties of the other guard's plate. The guard forgot me again, and resumed his battle with the farm boy turned hero. I prepared another arrow, aiming low. Link was breathing hard, sweat turning his clothes dark in a V pattern down his chest. One arm was bleeding heavily, and he looked exhausted already. I put the bow and arrow away, unsheathing my sword and walking forward, my teeth gritted. I couldn't notice the pain of my muscles; anger and the instinct for survival were keeping my temper hot. Link glanced briefly at me, and the guard turned in response in time to see me almost throwing the sword forward in a swing. It met nicely with his helmet, producing a ringing sound that dazed the guard. Link stabbed through his unprotected side, pushing the blade in deep. The guard slumped to his knees and collapsed forward. Link drew his sword and wiped the foul, black ooze off on his shirt. He hissed in pain and clutched his injured arm only briefly, then hunched down and started probing the guard's belts and hips until he found what he wanted; an elaborate iron key.

We approached the gate together and he unlocked it, pushing it open. It swung noiselessly. In fact, after our loud skirmish, the castle was dead silent. It had always had a certain quiet when it was my home, but it was a peaceful, relaxed muting of noise. This was the silence of a battlefield after the victors had gone home. We walked in slowly, looking around. I knew people had been murdered under our feet, trying to escape. I only hoped they believed me dead and not that I'd run away. The path was surprisingly bare after that initial gate; but probably anyone who wanted in badly enough to beat the two guards was not going to have much trouble defeating more. And who would want to visit Ganon and the wreck of a castle anyway? Link studied the skies until he saw the owl he'd summoned. I knew where we were headed already; the stables. We had to scramble over hills of crumbled, burnt walls on our way. I studied the grounds morosely. The years of carefully cultivated trees and bushes were charred or dead. The grass was either yellow or gone, and everywhere there were bones, some small enough to… well, too small. Smaller than they should have been. I started to feel dizzy, and I realized I'd been holding my breath. I panted for air, Link slowing down. "Am I going too fast?" I shook my head, wheezing like an idiot. He hugged me around the shoulders.

The stables were in poor shape. There were gaping holes in the roof. The trough listed to one side, empty of water. One door hung open at an angle, broken off its hinge. I glanced now and again at the castle before we entered the stables, praying the Goddesses would block us from Ganon's sight. As soon as we entered, there was the sound of hooves thumping angrily against wood, and a high-pitched horse's scream of fury. "Calm down, Epona!" Link ordered. Sure enough, she did. In the dim light I could see her. Her eyes were wide and wild. Her form was thinner than it should have been, and scars were dashed across her neck and flank like a poor attempt at stripes. Link didn't say a word, but I could feel the fury radiating off him at how his horse had been treated. She calmed down when he got close, nuzzling his cheek and biting his uninjured shoulder. "I know girl, I know," he whispered to her. "We're here now." He opened the stall door and led her out, looking around for a bridle and a saddle, anything. There were none to be found. "Oh well," Link sighed in annoyance. "I guess we'll go bareback." I scrambled up as best I could onto the horse's back, Link pushing me up with his hands before he climbed up behind me. I struggled with sitting side saddle, and gave up to straddle the horse the way he did. Link nudged Epona's hips with his heels and she started running, bursting out of the stables and flying like the wind. I held on to her mane with my fingers, bouncing along on her back as we rode away from the castle. Link's arms were pressed against my sides, his hands clutching to Epona's neck to hold himself onto the horse. I could feel his chest against my back, warm and comforting. At least I had one person to keep me company, no matter what happened.

We kept running, out of the market, over the ruined bridge. Link glanced back now and again, checking to see if we were being followed, and thankfully, surprisingly, we weren't. He let his horse slow down to a gentle canter, and I looked around the wide field. It didn't look terribly bad, destruction wise. But there was still plenty of dead or dying grass, and wide patches of cracked dirt. I simply couldn't believe this was the same Hyrule. Link was silent as I studied the ruined lands. I could barely feel his breath at the back of my neck. "We're heading to my home, your majesty. It might… not be suitable for royalty, but it's a safe place." I nodded, not bothering to correct him about the royal honorifics he insisted on using. Part of me was a little disheartened he quit using 'my lady'. "How far is your house?" I asked softly, running my fingers carefully through the horse's mane. It was tangled beyond belief, as if they'd never bothered to brush her, which wouldn't have surprised me. I worked on knots to occupy my hands, licking my lips now and again.

"It's fairly far; we might have to stop somewhere for the night."

"Where could we stop? I feel unsafe as it is."

He nodded, understanding my concern. "I'm unsure, my lady. But I'll keep an eye out for you." I believed him. It was easy to do. He'd been there with me in the Sacred Realm, had been the one to bloody take me there. I trusted him unconditionally, as much as any of the animals that lived in the castle, and that was the scary thing. Epona slowed to a walk now, and I let it go. All that could be seen of my once-home were a few towering turrets, burned and battle-scarred up close, but still magnificent from a distance. I wanted to be there. I wanted to wake up from this horrific dream in my bed, being served hot porridge with a hard boiled egg and toast. I wanted to walk around the estate in my best clothes, stroking the roses in the maze gardens with my faithful lapdogs trailing behind. But most of all I wanted my father to be alive. I started to cry bitterly, very aware of Link's closeness and trying to sniffle and sob as quietly as possible. But he didn't miss a beat. "Zelda?" he asked. I let the informality slide as he hugged me from behind, his strong arms across my chest. I was pinned against him backwards, and it felt good to be held and comforted. "You can let go now," I muttered when I was finally calm. He released me without comment.

The eeriest thing was that we were encountering no one else in our travels. There'd always been someone on the roads; traveling Zora, families heading to or from market, the occasional scout. But as we were, there was absolutely no one. When my stomach started to snarl again, I tried to hide it. Link shook his head and brought his horse to a stop, climbing down and helping me to do the same. "I'm hungry as well," he admitted. He took up his bow and a few arrows, trudging off through the dead grass in search of prey. I followed him at first, until he waved his hand in my direction, focused straight ahead. "You'll scare him," was all he replied. I stopped and sat down where I was.

He moved slowly, with purpose. I hadn't gotten much of a chance to see Link moving in his natural element. He was always wrapped in uncomfortable, stiff clothes as my regent, stepping around clumsily in dance. I hadn't realized how at home he was in the wild, returning to it. He carefully raised the bow, an arrow already on it. To watch him now, slinking like a prowling wolf, I could understand the word 'sensual' quite clearly. I watched the strong muscles in his arms and thighs tense as he crouched low. His broad shoulders flexed with his movements, moving through the thin material like it was water. Even in the middle of the day, when it was terribly inappropriate, I was wondering how I could get him to move like that, all single-minded purpose and intent. I felt heat rise up in my face, and realized with disgust that I was breathing raggedly, as if I'd been running. Panting like a dog! Over a common farm boy! I wanted to slap myself for such idiocy, and at the same time as I did so, I heard the twang of the bowstring and a pained squeal.

Link bounded forward and crouched down in the grass, standing back up and turning around. He'd gotten a rabbit. It was sadly small, but it was better than tiny mushrooms. I shifted away, a little green as Link skinned and dressed the animal, burying the heart with a murmur of apology to the goddesses. "Can I borrow some more of your dress?" he asked softly, and I obliged. It was then I remembered how he got wounded during his fight with the guards. I tore off a few small strips from my skirt, offering them to him. As he tied the skin tight, stretched across four sticks, I tore off longer, thicker swaths of ribbon. "I… you got injured back there," I muttered. He looked at the gash in his arm, which had already mostly scabbed. "It's nothin', your majesty." I shook my head. "Let me try, okay?" With a sigh, he pulled off the ill-fitting garb. The loose, cottony shirt he wore underneath still fit adequately enough. I pushed open the sleeve and bandaged his arm with some clumsy care.

All this use of the material had made my skirts a little above ankle length; at least they'd be easier to walk in now. Link thanked me when I finished tying up his arm, shrugging his coat back on. He built up a small pile of grass and small branches, centered in one of the random bare patches of earth, and lit it with a flint and the Master Sword. Flames licked reluctantly to life, and he fed it carefully before laying the rabbit on top, using another stick to turn it occasionally and roast it slowly over the fire. We sat there in silence as he prepared the food. "So… where did you learn to hunt?" I finally asked. I wanted to ask him where he learned how to move like he did, so calculatingly, making me stop and stare until I didn't know what to do with myself. I'd never seen a prince move the way he did. "My father taught me. That's where I learned most of my little skills." He looked at me with a faint smile before turning back to the food. "You're so serious," I said without thinking. Link studied me with an impassive face. "Sorry about that. My mother always said the same thing." He stirred at the fire with a stick. "Why… did you agree to be my regent?" He continued to poke and prod at the wood, thinking.

"You might not like the answer."

"Try me."

"Well," he took a little breath. "You remember why I said I came, right?"

"Yes, of course I do."

"The drought wasn't the only reason we didn't have much money. My father had fallen ill, and my mother had to hire people to come in and help work the land."

"But she sent you to the castle to beg for mercy?"

Link wrinkled his nose. "In so many words, yes. She trusted that I would do so. And, I knew my father's illness would probably get worse, and then doctor bills would pile up, and the crop was failing. So…"

"It was strictly business." I finished. Link shrugged his shoulders. "I wouldn't say strictly, your majesty. But the offer of a monthly pension being sent to my family was… tempting." He pulled the rabbit off the fire and used a small dagger to cut meat off the bones, and alternating eating a piece and handing me one. "As was a taste of the good life, I'm sorry to say." I felt a little bubble of sadness well in my chest. Not for his family, but for my own stupid, selfish reasons that I had been hoping he'd tell me I had captured his heart with my beauty, the stupid predictable answer all regents gave in horrid half-rupee novels before they kissed their princesses for the first time. Not for me, at least.


	8. Chapter 8

The rabbit tasted great, for being so scrawny. It missed all the things about it that I hated about food in the castle; that hint of oldness, the stingy taste of pepper meant to disguise the oldness, and the ways it was prepared; almost always fried, roasted all day with potatoes and too much garlic, or softened in stew. When it was clean, Link flung the uneaten bones in the fire and he watched it burn down with those eyes. "What are you thinking?" I asked softly, realizing that it sounded a bit stupid a moment too late. He shrugged. "I'm trying to plan our steps. Kakariko isn't too far from here; if it doesn't bother you, I'd like to stop there and see if anyone's around to talk to." I nodded.

"And if there's no one to talk to?"

"Well, then we'll just keep heading towards my old home."

It sounded fair enough, but I was still bothered with my own dark thoughts. I wanted to question every step, make sure he had a plan for everything that was possible to happen, but at the same time I didn't want to irritate him. I leaned back and looked up at the sky through the haze, or tried to. Failing that, I studied the dying fire instead. "How long do you think it's been?" He looked at me. "Not sure. Maybe four, five years." I nodded.

When the flames cooled, we scooped earth onto the embers. Link stood up and helped me up with his hands, his grip strong. He went over to his horse, who was making a vague attempt at grazing the dead grass, and helped me back up, climbing on after me. We were off again, cantering towards Kakariko and the smoldering volcano. Link's arms were tight on my sides, holding me in place. What was wrong with me? Improper thoughts kept moving into my head, and I bit them back furiously. Soon, we were there at the village. The sign over the main entrance hung from one chain, the other snapped in half. It creaked as we passed under it.

Kakariko village was torn apart. Buildings, if not crumbled to nothing, had gaping holes in their sides. The earth was purged more thoroughly here. Everything was still. Nothing moved. Link dismounted and crept through the village. After a few minutes I followed. He walked up to buildings and touched their doors lightly with his fingertips, sticking his head in. "Hello?" Never a reply. I followed him around, keeping an eye out. The temperature was moving downward as we got closer to the back end of town where the graveyard was located. I shivered and wrapped my cloak tighter around my body. Link went ahead of me, straight for the graveyard. He abruptly stopped and backed up, shaking his head vigorously. "No. We're not going in there." I stared at him in surprise. "Why not?" He shook his head still; he wasn't telling me. "We're just not." He was pale. I quit questioning him and nodded.

He led me up the path to the trail on Death Mountain, looking around. Nothing jumped out at us, nothing attacked us. It was somehow worse. The trail, what little of it we climbed up, was bare of life. Not even bits of mountain lichen or the coarse grass that usually dotted its landscape. From far, far above, we heard a high-pitched roar, and then the thunder of an avalanche. Link put his arm out protectively in front of me. Wherever the avalanche was, it wasn't tumbling down the trail to crush us in its wake. That was better than nothing. "It's too quiet here," he muttered darkly, suspicious of every minute sound, even the pounding of my own heart. With a sigh, he started walking out, and I followed. We passed by a house, and I stopped dead when I heard a soft 'hello?', cautiously called through the door. "Link! Stop! I heard a voice!" He wheeled instantly and jogged back. We approached the building together. It had a grungy blue roof and once-pale white walls. The door creaked open a little further, and an old man stepped out, studying us with relief. He had thin white hair, and wore dirty blue robes. "You're the first Hylians I've seen here in… ages. Since the queen ran off with her regent and…" He looked up and really saw us not long after. "Oh Goddesses- your majesty." He bowed low, his eyes on the ground. "It was a lie, wasn't it?" he whispered to the ground. "Yes," I replied softly. I held out my left hand, and he gasped in shock as he stared at the symbol of the triforce before kissing it, his hands shaking. "I'm so sorry, your majesty."

"You were lied to, but I cannot blame you for being upset. After all, I did vanish most suddenly." I sighed. "Is anyone else around?" He nodded. "There is a group of them. They holed themselves into a secret city up in the mountain, to hide from his reign of terror. I imagine they would be relieved to see you, your majesty." I nodded. "I'll go see them immediately." I thanked the old man kindly for the information, and we both headed back to the mountain. Link kept in front of me, his hand constantly on the pommel of the Master Sword as we headed up the trail at a slow pace.

The air on the mountain was dry and crackly, and the dust we kicked up made me cough. The sun was bearing down on us, fighting with the smoggy clouds to choke us with oppressive heat. More than once I had to insist that we stop and rest. Link was edgy, but waited as I took my breath. We removed our cloaks almost immediately, carrying their bulk in our arms, as it would be cold once we got off the mountain. I could feel my skin getting pink from the heat, my tight dress and the thick material making breathing a chore. About a half of the way up the trail, Link stopped and looked around with a frown. I sat down yet again on a large rock, my skin feeling tight and my face sweaty. Part of me wanted to joke that we should have gone to the lake instead. A swoon prickled at the edge of my vision, and I wished dearly to give into it. So I did.

Link immediately shouted and put his hands on my shoulders to prop me up, and I groaned in response, my eyelids fluttering. "Your majesty! Are you alright?"

"Nnnnyes.. m'fine, m'fine… sorry, just…" He helped me sit up properly. "It's too hot up here; I'll… I'll head back down to find you some water, alright?" I shook my head. "Stay with me, please." He nodded and sat down next to me on the rock. I lifted my head and looked further up the trail, at a crumbled pile of rocks stacked precariously against the mountainside of the trail.

They looked as if they would fall any minute, tumbling down the path and crushing us. I could almost see them breaking loose and bouncing away, smashing into each other and merrily flying off the cliff behind us. Beyond them, the spot they protected, was a wide hole, leading into the heart of the mountain. What would we find back there? I stood in my trancelike state, ignoring Link as he stood up to make me sit back down. My hand was hot, almost burning, as I pointed with it towards the boulders. They were still flying past us, slowly. Link stood up and approached the cluster of rocks, putting his hand on them and frowning.

"There's air behind them!" he called to me, before gripping them and pulling the rocks away with his strong hands. They started tumbling down the mountain in earnest, but not nearly as fast or chaotically as they had in my vision. I followed him over and stood back, watching as he pulled with gritted teeth on the stones, exposing a small tunnel. "Zelda… how did you know this was here?" I let him drop the formality, shaking my head. I had no idea.

Link crept in first, and I followed him. The tunnel was high enough that we didn't have to duck down, but it was quite narrow. The little hall curved gently to the right and downward, and I tripped occasionally over a small stone now and again. The air quickly grew hot, and sweat prickled down my back, catching in my clothes. How I wished for new ones! Link never wavered, even when the air was stifling. I could hear his ragged breathing, but he kept going at the same pace, not slowing down for lack of water. Eventually, the hollow turned slightly upward and the air cooled; we could see a spot of light, and rushed toward it. Upon exiting the tunnel, we realized we had made it to the secret town the old man spoke of. The buildings were rather banged up; made of rusty sheet metal, hunks of brick, and wormhole-riddled wood. A few older men called out, running at us, two with broken, rusty spears and the third with a sword in poor condition.

Link pushed me behind him and drew the Master Sword, watching the men carefully. They slowed down when they got a few feet away, studying us. Their faces were gaunt, their eyes ringed with dark circles, and their clothes were in similar condition. Finally, one spoke up. "Your… Majesty?" It took me a few minutes to recognize him; when I did, I gasped in shock. It was one of my elite guards! He'd been quite muscular when I was in the castle, a huge man that was all chest and shoulders. But he looked strange now; barely a ghost of his former size and stature. He dropped his weapons immediately and got down on one knee in salute. I'd covered my face with my hands when I recognized him, and I shook my head vigorously. "Get up, please!" He did so slowly, wincing. I saw now that he had dirty cloth tied around his thigh, the bandage stained brown with dried blood. The two other men I did not recognize. For all I knew, they were farmers. The guard and I stared helplessly at each other for several minutes, before I looked around the ramshackle town. "What has gone on here? What has happened to my country?" My guard shook his head. "If you'll come with us, your majesty, we can sit down and tell you." Link and I followed the three men further into the town. We kicked up dust with our shoes, and it settled on everything; the hem of my clothes, as a mist in Link's hair. The buildings were erected haphazardly, some against each other to share a wall, others off on their own. My old guard took us to a small little building that stood on its own and opened the door. Inside was a table with one broken leg, so that it leaned to one side, and overturned boxes for chairs. There were only three, and the men insisted that I take one. Link stood behind me as I sat reluctantly. My guard sat across from me, and one of the farming men sat down. The little house was empty of other people, but dirty with glass bottles with sour milk lingering in the bottom, the reek of stale beers, cloying dust and unwashed bodies.

"What has been going on?" I demanded immediately. My guard only frowned at me in return. "I will tell you if you swear to tell us where you've been for the past five years." I glared at him and his condescending tone. "How dare you speak to me that way?! Where I've been-"

"Is important for them to know, your majesty," Link murmured from behind me. "We'll tell you what you want to know if you tell us first." The guard shifted uncomfortably, looking at Link and then myself, nodding. I agreed as well, and leaned back to listen.

"You were gone for three days before Ganondorf made his move and declared himself acting as King Regent in your absence. No one knew where you'd gone. A few maids had been whispering about the two of you… running off together."

I narrowed my eyes, but said nothing, nodding for him to go on.

"When Ganondorf declared himself Regent, there was an uproar. Even though he had every right by the books and the charters to do such a thing, no one in that bloody palace trusted him. We issued challenges, which he did not take to kindly. Those that issued them with intent to take his place either became violently ill, or suffered family emergencies. So he remained Regent. Everything was normal for a month or two, except that we couldn't find either of you anywhere. Not even a body or nothing. Bordering territories had not seen you pass through; your horses were found ambling about near the stables, tacked up, but they had no clues. At the end of that month, Ganondorf demand the search be called off, and that a funeral be held for the two of you. They were closed casket sort of affairs, the whole damned thing was all pomp and showy and ludicrous. You… the caskets were buried and covered with dirt, and Ganondorf poured the wine to bless the ground and all that at the end of the ceremony.

"A week after the caskets were buried, he started implementing new taxes, new laws. Importing and exporting from a majority of the other countries became several times more expensive, unless it was to or from Gerudo. Funding for the royal defense depleted, as did funding for farming families, the less fortunate, building roads, education; all of these things were being funneled away from us… and we suspect to a private organization.

"Ganondorf finished the temples he'd been building, and then sealed them, saying that they were for those privileged enough to speak with the goddesses only, and that any wishes or prayers could be written and delivered to the Royal Mail, where they'd be delivered to the temples by Ganondorf personally. Or so he said. There were a few nights where… where I was standing guard in the Great Hall, and I'd watch him rip open hundreds of letters, taking out any donations, and throwing the rest in the fire. With all of this money that was being wrongly donated, he only made pay tighter. Scullery maids were practically slaves, stable boys were being beaten…" He paused and shuddered. "This went on for two years. Finally, one night in our bunks, a soldier informed me that his parents were planning to flee the country, and he wanted to go with them. I gave him permission to go."

The guard had to pause for a few minutes, and to my surprise, the old farmer sitting near him spoke up. "Ganondorf found out. He had th' soldier followed, an' when he met up with his parents, he gave the command to kill them. The soldier an' his mother were slain… but 'is father survived by hoppin' on his son's horse an' runnin'." There were huge tears in the farmer's eyes, and I realized in shock that this was the soldier's father, ashamed of his cowardice. "Go on, please," I insisted softly. The farmer did so, reluctantly. "I've never been much of a writer, your majesty. I traveled to Termina, an' had a letter dictated there, sendin' it to the captain o' the elite guard."

"I'd already made up my mind to leave anyway, and I managed to get his letter on my last day of employment. I was… just going to leave in the night and not come back. Many had already done so, and Ganondorf didn't seem to care after that first initial slaughter." He took a deep breath. "He proposed to us that we find some way of banding together the remaining good people of Hyrule, to hide from Ganondorf's rule until either he was overthrown or you, your majesty, returned."

"How did you… find this town?" I folded my hands together, leaning forward.

"We enlisted the help of the Gorons. We told them that we wanted nothing to do with Ganondorf, but as good people who respected the queen and her friendships and alliances, we humbly requested their aid in finding somewhere to live without Ganondorf watching our every step. They happily obliged. That was three years ago, as you can tell. We've been living here in secret ever since, the entrance to our home sealed with massive stones. The Gorons could climb up with their muscular arms over the mountain to reach us without disturbing the rocks, and would bring us food and news of the outside world. An old man decided to stay in the abandoned village below, in case of wandering travelers, or to distract Ganondorf, should he suspect that we were in hiding somewhere." I nodded. "We met him. He told us about this place." My old guard nodded. "Your majesty… we never abandoned you." I could tell he wanted to apologize, and I shook my head. "There is no harm done. You were simply trying to survive." The guard took up my left hand and kissed the triforce symbol, as did the old farmer. I felt tears prickling in my vision- tears for the hardships they had suffered during my absence.


	9. Chapter 9

"Now, your majesty, you promised to tell us where you had gone off to."

I stared at them both for a few minutes, worrying my lower lip, trying to think of a way to accurately portray what had happened. "Well…" I looked back to Link, and he stepped forward, further into the light. It stunned me to realize how haggard the journey had also rendered him; or perhaps it was just the fact that we were both so much older now. "I can't adequately explain what happened to us, as I hardly understand it myself." I looked back and forth, the men nodding. "Well… do you know the legend of the Master Sword?"

"That he who wields it will be the Legendary Hero, that it will lead the destined ones to the Sacred Realm and the Triforce," my guard answered. Link chose this moment to pull the Master Sword from his sheath and lay it on the table. The men stared with wide eyes. He looked round at them, looking stern and handsome. "This is the Master Sword. We have been to the Sacred Realm. Time is suspended there. It does not flow the same as it does in Hyrule. We were there for five years, and we have spoken with the Goddesses." I studied the grain of the table. "That is where we were." Cautiously, the old guard picked up the Master Sword and studied it. "Impeccable," he muttered. "It is as if the Goddesses themselves forged it."

"They very well may have," Link replied. I could feel him standing close behind me, and it gave me pinpricks on the back of my neck. The guard handed back the sword, Link immediately resheathing it without further comment. "Tell me, why are the buildings, my home- the entire country a right mess?"

"It's all Ganondorf's influence," the old farmer spoke up. "Something evil hovers about him; it's poisoning our country. Can't hardly grow no crops because of it; all th' animals are malnourished an' sick. The Zora have been having ill luck still; their princess is still safe from the ich, but there's very few of them left. There's less'n a hundred, from what we've heard." I stared, my mouth agape. "They used to number in the thousands," I whispered in shock. The farmer nodded. "Used to, your majesty."

I closed my eyes. I couldn't take this anymore. "Something has to be done," I whispered, shaking my head. The guard nodded. "We're with you every step of the way, your majesty." I sniffed and wiped tears from my eyes. "I know, I know." With a sigh, my former elite stood up. "We will be honored to offer you shelter and clothes. Do not worry; this is more of an interrogation room, hence the pungent odors. You won't be staying in here."

"Thank you," I murmured, standing and holding my guard's hands with both of my own, then the old farmer's. "Truly. We… I don't know how we would have lasted."

The men led us out of the small building, leading us back into the center of the broken town. A few battered women and dirty children stood out now, their clothes smudged with dirt and dust, tattered but no holes- those that would have been were mended neatly. They stared at both Link and myself as we trudged along the dusty path. I lowered my head, feeling guilty. I could not stand to look at these people that I had let down so horribly in the times when they needed me most.

We were led to a wide building. Inside it was rather empty, but clean. Cots were stacked everywhere, along with blankets, some with holes, and defeated pillows that could hardly support themselves. I was grateful just for people who were good and kind, opening their homes to us. I could feel a gnawing in my stomach again. The rabbit really hadn't been enough. But I was already taking space from these people I'd left behind, and I was not going to demand nourishment as well. I settled in on a cot, curling up with my knees to my chest. Link sat down on the one next to mine, looking around the wide space. "And you've been surviving here like this?" I asked an old lady softly, as she was approaching with clean blankets and pillows. She nodded, smoothing her hair back with her hands after I retrieved the things from her.

"It's the best we have, your majesty. We took what we could from our homes."

"No, no, I'm not… I'm not ungrateful, please believe me on that." I looked up at her with wide eyes. "I am just… I'm ashamed that I could not be here to protect you." The old woman nodded, her stance and eyes softening. "I did not run away willingly. I was taken." She sat down on the cot next to me and hugged me, as if she were my own mother. "There there now. No one's blamin' you." I didn't believe her. I was certain they did. All of them. Why wouldn't they blame me, when I'd abandoned them to be tortured? The woman left, and I laid down on my back on the cot, pulling the blanket up over my body and staring at the ceiling. The pillow barely cupped my head. Link rustled in the blankets on his own cot, folding his arms over his chest and staring at the ceiling as well. I hadn't realized how long we'd been talking with the two men. Or maybe our sense of time was just warped. Link rustled some more, and I peeked at him out of the corner of my eye. He'd rolled on his side, facing me, and his green outer tunic was off. "Your majesty," he asked softly. I turned my head toward him.

"Yes?"

"It's not your fault." I looked away, staring resolutely at the ceiling and blinking rapidly. He sighed. "Look at me." I glanced over at him. Link was frowning a little. "I mean it. It's not your fault." I turned away again and sniffed. "These people hate me. I abandoned them." I just wanted to be alone; to close my eyes and think to myself.

I heard Link sigh again, and shift to roll over and sleep. But I couldn't. I laid awake, staring off into space, letting the tears roll down my cheeks. A thought cropped up in my head; wasn't I sick of crying about my country all the time? Wouldn't I rather do something about it? Of course I would; but I didn't know what to do. I sat up and looked around. We were the only ones in the room at the moment; everyone else was probably eating or doing whatever they usually did during the day. I climbed off the cot, wobbling, looking down at my attire. It was so hot- sweat was constantly soaking the back of my dress. I frowned and picked at the ragged bottom. I'd loved this dress; designed it to my own specifications, picked the material and beads and everything. And here I was, tearing it to bits. My former life was reflected in the dress. I was peeling it away, revealing the stifled woman underneath.

I didn't actually start to tear it up, though. What else would I wear? Instead, I tore off a thin swatch and used it to tie my hair up in a messy bun. Already, I felt better. The sweat evaporated off my neck as I fanned it rapidly with my hands, my eyes closed. I sighed when all was done, and looked at Link, surprised that he was sleeping. Then again; he'd had it much harder than me. He'd been having to do everything for me; getting the horse, building the fires, finding the food, keeping watch all night, leading me around; everything I'd needed, he'd done. And I'd never bothered, not once, to thank him for staying by my side. It was no longer in the realm of him playing as my regent protector. Was it part of his sense of duty to the goddesses? I had to walk around; to be up off my feet. Outside of the building, I could hear hushed voices, and I couldn't quite understand what they were saying. Instead of listening in, I continued walking around in circles, staring down at my muddy, dusty boots. They used to be such nice things, leather lined with wool to keep my feet warm. Now they smelled awful, the wool was yellowed from my sweat, and the seams were coming apart. I couldn't believe how much my feet had seemed to grow in four years. I sat back down on the cot I was granted. Link was sleeping soundly, hugging the pillow tight to his face. I noticed that under his eyes were dark bruises; from only a few nights of staying up and making sure I was safe? I sighed and laid back down on the cot, closing my eyes. Perhaps it was best if we both rested for now.

I woke up because someone's hand was over my mouth, their arm tight across my hips. I squeaked and thrashed desperately against their grip, only for a low voice to hiss in my ear, "Be still, your majesty!" I relaxed, breathing harshly with my panic against Link's rough hand. Outside, I could hear a voice that made my blood run cold. Ganondorf's form was silhouetted against the windows, a fire raging to outline him. "Well?!" he commanded. His voice boomed through the desolate town. "You said you had the queen, where is she? Bring her out here!" We'd been betrayed.

Link held me captive in a corner of the large room where we'd been sleeping, behind a stack of boxes to keep us out of sight. He looked around behind him, but there was no way for us to run out. "Stay here," he whispered in my ear, pulling away and heading to the opposite corner. I curled up and watched him. If Ganondorf caught us, he'd kill us both. I felt my blood run cold. He no longer cared about gaining the pieces of the triforce; he just wanted to hold Hyrule in his grasp.

I forced myself to look away from the man outside, looking around for Link. He was swearing quietly; there really wasn't another way out besides the main entrance. I could hear Ganondorf shouting again at the timid people. "If you won't find her, I will!" He headed away from our building and deeper into the city. Link headed back over to me and then past to the wall, opposite from where he'd been, testing his fingers on the window before giving it a push. It creaked at the same time as a boom of thunder. We took it as a sign that the goddesses were helping us, and Link pushed the window open further, wriggling out through it on his stomach and pulling me after him. My wide hoop skirt got stuck on the pane, and he gritted his teeth, climbing back in and reaching up my dress to pull it off. I managed to wriggle my hips out of it, climbing down face-first into the dusty ground next to the building. Link followed me out and helped me up, and we ran behind the buildings. Behind us, we heard Ganondorf roaring at the displaced villagers, but we couldn't understand him. We got to the tunnel quickly and ran, making our escape.

Link stayed right behind me. I could heard him panting, and his hand was on my back. It was much easier to move now without my cumbersome hoop skirts. We were walking through the heat of the tunnel, and it seemed stronger than I remembered. There was a booming roar echoing through the tunnel, and I couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from. Link pushed on my back, and I stumbled, trying to hurry on my way with hushed apologies. "Just keep going," he ordered. I could see a gleam on the walls of the tunnel. Link had the Master Sword unsheathed, lighting our way. We kept running. When we broke free of the cave, Link took the lead. He grabbed my hand and we stumbled down the trail as quickly as possible. "I can't believe this happened," he muttered darkly. I realized that he wasn't angry; he was hurt. He was stunned that people who would have connected with him the best had given us away. And I didn't know what to say to make it better.

When we got to the decimated remains of Kakariko, we broke into a run. Link pulled me by the hand, running much faster than I could. His horse was missing; stolen again, we could assume. But he whistled for her, and she came running. We stopped long enough for both of us to climb up, and then we were off again, the horse doing the running for us.


	10. Chapter 10

Link held his horse in a tight grip. I was gripping the horse's mane so tight that I felt sorry for her. She was thundering through the dark, as far away from the mountain as we could quickly manage. I looked back, but little was visible under the new moon. So instead I looked up at the stars, trying to connect the constellations I knew. I wanted it to take my mind off what had just occurred, but it wasn't helping.

The horse ran until she couldn't, and Link forced her to stop. We climbed down and walked on either side of her, hands resting on her massive shoulders. Link was terse as usual, though now and again I tried to peek at him to see what he was thinking, but his expression wasn't very clear in the dark.

I must've fallen asleep on my feet at one point, because Link was shaking my shoulders gently, and the horse had come to a stop. Apparently, I hadn't. "Wake up, your majesty." His voice was low and quiet, and I yawned and looked around slowly. My back and neck ached, and my feet and legs burned. It was getting light out. The sky was a soft gray-green, and I could dimly make out the green of Link's tunic, the subdued red of my dress. His face was drawn, and he looked exhausted, but nodded when I came around. "Good." Link walked away, and I could see a small house a little ways ahead. It was rather war-torn, like everything else. The front door was torn off, windows were smashed, and some of the siding had been pulled away. A good distance beyond it was a dilapidated farmhouse, with the remains of a wide fence running from its side doors outward. Past even that were open fields.

"This is my home," Link murmured. His hands were folded across his chest, and his face was almost heart-broken. I put a comforting hand on his shoulder and looked over the shabby buildings. "It's… well, it's a roof, right?" Link was my anchor in this place. He was the only person who knew what I'd been through. So the least I could do for him was to give him my support. I headed forward bravely, going into the house. It was fairly clean, actually, if I could just ignore the thick layer of dust that covered everything. If it wasn't for the battered outside, I could think that the people who lived in the place just got up and left. I explored in silence. The kitchen, hopefully happy under the thick blanket of grey, was clean. The beds were made, everything arranged neatly. I turned to head out and nearly ran into Link. The carpet of dust had muffled his boots. We stared at each other.

Link broke the eye contact and headed into the other bedroom. "This is my old bedroom," he murmured. The bed was smaller, as was the room itself. I nodded. He looked back to me. "We should try to get a little rest before traveling further. I hope you find my parents' room accommodating." I did indeed. Almost timidly, I pulled away the sheets, sending dust flying around the room and leading to a dreadful coughing fit. I closed my eyes and coughed furiously into one hand, my eyes watering from all the irritants in the air. When I was sure it was safe, I climbed into the bed and pulled the covers up over me, burying my face into a clean pillow and willing myself to sleep.

When I woke, it was much brighter in the little room. I shook off the strange dream I'd had and couldn't quite remember, and climbed out of the bed. I peeked in at Link; he was still asleep. Instead I wandered around the little house, looking around, trying not to snoop but genuinely curious. I didn't know a thing about Link's home life. But this dusty little house didn't seem too intent on sharing. I wandered into the kitchen, hoping that I could find something for us to eat in there. Old potatos with eyes longer than themselves growing new potatos greeted me in one cupboard. In another though, I found some flour. If we could procure water somehow, we could make a sort of biscuit. I found a tin bucket in the corner of the kitchen and took it outside by the handle, looking around for a source of water, finally spotting a spigot some yards from the house. I walked over and set the bucket down, and grabbed the handle. Spiders as big as my thumbnail skittered away from the underside of the handle, and I kicked it a few times to make sure they had all run off somewhere. I started to pump the handle again, and the spigot produced dust and dirt, until finally a dribble of rusty water fell into the bucket.

Sweat was on my forehead and soaking my undershirt, but I was relieved, and I renewed my efforts, dumping out the water that was brown. When I had enough clean water for us to drink and to maybe make food with, I hefted the heavy bucket with both hands, even though my arms were cramping, and carried it back to Link's home. I slipped inside, and couldn't hear anything; he was probably still sleeping. I set down the bucket of water on the floor, and grabbed the tin of flour. Surely there had to be more to a recipe than just this? I started to explore the kitchen again, finding a dusty little box with a dozen or so recipe cards written in slanting, curly hand. I couldn't identify most of the ingredients it called for, and those I did know were ones that would have long gone bad. As I stood there reading, I sensed a change in the atmosphere behind me. Something raised the hairs on the back of my neck, and I held perfectly still for several seconds. Everything was very still, until finally feet shuffled and a board creaked, and I whipped around to see Link standing there, yawning sleepily and dressed only in his breeches and undershirt. I took a deep breath and laughed weakly. "You frightened me."

"I'm sorry, my lady."

There we go, he was back to that intimate honorific. I turned back around and busied my hands with looking for cups. Link stepped up and showed me where they were, and he peered into the bucket. "Water!" he cried in delight.

"I got it from the spout outside," I replied.

Link raised his eyebrows. "Really?" I nodded, feeling good that I'd accomplished something. Link smiled back and filled the cups with water. I drank eagerly, surprised at how thirsty I'd become so quickly. Link stood next to me, and when I looked up from my glass he was watching me with a smoldering gaze. "H-hey-" I cleared my throat and stepped back, feeling nervous and shy. Link set his cup down and started to prowl- that was exactly what he was doing- around the kitchen. He opened cupboards and pantries, frowning. "S'all you found?" he asked quietly, indicating the flour and water. I nodded, feeling shameful. Link brushed by me again, heading to the rooms. He returned with his bow and arrow hooked on his back, and he grabbed a small spade from near the front door that I hadn't seen at first. "I'll see if the garden's any good."

I nodded and lingered at the sink in the kitchen, because it had a wide window and I could watch him from there. He dug for several minutes, recovering a few shriveled, grey carrots. I watched with a sinking heart as he cursed and stood up again, kicking the sad vegetables in frustration. Instead, he grabbed his bow and arrow and trailed off outside of my vision across the house. I held my breath while in the kitchen, thinking again of the smooth way he had with moving. He prowled like a wolf, fierce and deadly. I was thankful that I was on his good side. I wandered back through the house for now, going into the room where Link had slept. His rucksack was open, and I spied some small, unlit bombs and a hookshot. They looked familiar, and I realized he'd gotten them from the castle. They'd probably been in his room when we lived there. Near the foot of the bed was a pile of neat clothes, but they looked far too small for him.

Taking a clue from this, I returned to his parents' room that I'd been staying in, and went into the closet. A sick sense of guilt rattled me for taking their clothes, but I would buy them more if we survived this. If they had survived this. Link's mother actually had a few pairs of work breeches, to my surprise. They were clean and whole. I slipped them on. The waist was too big, so I tore another strip of fabric off my beautiful dress and used it to secure the clothes to my waist. A door slammed in the house, and I tensed. "My lady?" Link called.

"I'm in here!" I replied.

He peeked in at me. "I ah… caught some breakfast." Peeking from behind his back were a few slain squirrels. "What are you doing?"

I let go of my nightgown. I'd been holding it up around my waist to tie my makeshift belt on, and showing off my bare legs. "I… seeing as our clothes don't fit us anymore, I figured it might be wiser to wear…" Shame made me look away. Link shifted, leaning on the doorframe. "No, no, it's a good idea. I'll ready breakfast, and you grab something for me to wear, okay?" I nodded, and he thumped back into the kitchen.

I turned my back to the door and took a flowy shirt and a tight bodice from his mother's clothes, grabbing a shirt and breeches and the other necessities for Link. I stepped out into the main room, where I could hear Link rustling about. I stripped off my shift and picked up the new shirt, pausing and taking a moment to study how I'd changed, physically. They were definitely bigger. I held one each gently in my hands, closing my eyes. Such a woman. My mother would be proud. For a few minutes, I noticed that stifling silence again, the feeling of being watched, and I hurriedly got dressed, lacing up the side laces of the bodice. I tied my hair up once more with the strip from my dress. Looking it over, I sadly folded it and left it on his parents' bed.

I slipped on some shoes I found in Link's mother's closet, and headed out to the kitchen. Link had managed to get a fire going in the stove, and had the squirrel cooking and sizzling in a pan, along with some small slices of potato. "Small, but hopefully it'll give us somethin' substantial on our bellies." He looked shy all of a sudden, and had trouble meeting my eyes. "It's okay," I said finally. "I like your house." He didn't have to be ashamed of living on a farm, not around me. Link laughed, and I laughed too. After that, he seemed more relaxed. We ate from the pan with the same fork, snapping the gamey meat in quick, hungry bites.

When finished, Link cleaned the pan with the remaining water from the bucket, and went to change. I went outside and looked around the barren ground, wrapping my arms around myself. What should we do now? What could we do? Obviously, going to Death Mountain was too dangerous. That was a shame, as I badly wanted to talk to their elder. We should go towards the ocean. If the plague was so horrible, no one would dare want to be there besides the Zora that had no choice, and Ruto was a dear friend of mine when we were children. With my mind made up, I turned and headed back towards the house. Link stepped out before I got there, fully-dressed. His father's clothes fit him well. He nodded his head at me in approval. "I think we should head to the ocean," I announced when we were both inside. Link had gathered up our things and carefully tied the bags closed as small as they could go, so they would be easy to carry. He looked at me in surprise. "Why there?" I picked up my parcel and held it in both my hands. "Because I am acquaintanced with their princess, Ruto. And they are so far from the castle, that hopefully Ganondorf would not be able to encounter us there." Link thought it over for a few minutes, then nodded in agreement. "Are you sure you can trust her?" I nodded. "Ganondorf has infected her people with a plague when they did nothing wrong. I doubt they'll go running to betray us." Link looked rather hesitant, but he gave in. "We'll try it out." I smiled gratefully.

Soon, we had packed up our things. He locked up his home tight, rather reluctantly. "There's nothing for me here," he muttered to himself. I couldn't think of anything to say, so instead I put a comforting hand on his shoulder. Link looked at me when I did, and we locked eyes. At that very instant, I realized how very badly I wanted to kiss him. I cleared my throat and stepped back, wheeling away and scooping up my small bag of things, holding it against my chest. When I turned back around, Link was still gazing at me. He smiled faintly, and picked up his own bag, and called his horse over. We climbed up, me in front as usual, and headed in a canter due west, towards the oceans.


	11. Chapter 11

We were a quarter of the way there. I could barely see the towers of my old castle to the north of us. Link's arms held me in place on the horse's back. I closed my eyes, trying to make this all much more positive. We were lovers, escaping on a romantic getaway. We would sleep in the sand and make love in the tides. The coupling of married people was not that much of a mystery to me. It was something I'd been educated on while being groomed for marriage and childbirth. I could at least give a sterile, brief description of what happened during coitus, but the very act was foreign, and how anyone could actually want to perform such acts willingly; I hadn't figured out why. Part of me was hoping Link could show the way for that. I smiled to myself, and opened my eyes again.

The smile was disrupted by a crack of thunder. Link swore in a shout, and the horse reared and screamed. I looked behind us, and I could spy riders on massive, ugly boars charging after us. One had bombs that he lit and flung at us, hoping to startle the horse into dropping us. The other brandished a sword. Link unsheathed the Master Sword and raised it in the air, wrapping his free arm across my body and gripping Epona's mane tight. "Come and get us, you doglickers! Foul scum of hell!" He leaned down to my ear, rubbing his lips against its long edge. "Direct Epona towards the Lost Woods. Those boars can't turn very fast."

I whispered, "okay", and used my grip on the horse's mane to turn her towards the forest. Epona ran, screaming. The boars squealed in reply, and their riders' aim with the bombs was getting better. We charged through the trees. The uneven ground and labyrinthian scattering of trees slowed us down, but Link had been right. The boars were having a harder time wriggling their way through the trunks. Epona drove onward, splashing through hidden swamp and breaking brittle sticks under hoof. When we could no longer easily see beyond the trees, Link stopped Epona. We held our breath, looking around to see if our pursuers had caught up. The woods was quiet besides the occasional singing bird or chattering squirrel.

Link sighed in relief. "We escaped them." I looked around the forest, a sinking feeling in my gut. "Link, where are we?"

He patted my shoulder. "We're out of harm's way for now. Don't worry, I'll get us back out of this." I couldn't think of anything to say. I didn't wish to insult his ability. But I was scared. Link walked away, leaving me by the horse. "Don't!" I cried, my eyes wide. He was going to abandon me here?! This was called the Lost Woods because that was what happened to people who ventured in without some sort of guide—they got lost. Forever. Or at least, that was the legend.

Link stopped and looked back at me. He could see the childish worry in my eyes. There was a smile on his lips though, and I was able to calm down. "Miss, I grew up in these woods. We'd go explorin', me an' my friends, an' this'd be our favorite place. I ne'er got lost." I nodded slowly. I could believe him, it was easy to do. He made it easy. "Just stay in my sight, please," I asked softly. Link reached out and took my hand, kissing the knuckles. He turned and walked away into the trees, and I watched him. He was careful, avoiding as many broken branches as possible, to not make noise and draw them towards us.

I rubbed my hand where he kissed it, feeling warm and flushed. Was that a sign from him? An indication? I was probably assuming too much. Instead, I watched him as he prowled as far out as he could, walking in a wide circle around me. I'd picked dark-colored clothes for him, and he was barely visible. His horse nervously pawed at the ground under our feet. I turned and patted her muzzle. "It's okay girl," I muttered to her softly. She snorted against my palm, and jerked away, looking to the left. I looked as well, my eyes wide. Standing several yards off was a figure in white; a stag deer. Its antlers sprawled from its head like tree branches. But it was massive! I'd only partaken in a few hunts with my father, but this deer was bigger than the massive roan horse standing by my side. That just didn't seem right. It stepped forward, with a gentle rustling of leaves. I held my breath and turned back around. Link was heading back towards us. The stag looked in his direction, and started to step back.

"Stop!" I raised my hand in the stag's direction. It looked towards me again, and stepped forward. I turned. Link was back in our clearing. "What is it?"

I cleared my throat. "Don't you see it?"

"No, what?"

I turned back to the stag. It shook its mighty head. The towering figure was taller than I was. I smiled at the creature and reached up, stroking its massive head and neck. It felt like sticking my hand into a waterfall's mist, a sort of cold vapor. Link got up behind me. "What are you doing?" The stag started and snorted, and I shook my head. "You'll scare him."

"Who?"

It finally dawned on me that Link could not see the stag. Only I could. I lowered my hands. "There's a stag in front of me," I replied.

Link raised an eyebrow. "As in a deer?"

I nodded.

"And you can see him."

I turned back; the stag had started to move back, away from us. He snorted and pawed at the ground. "Yes. He wants us to follow him."

Link nodded. "Okay."

I was surprised at his ready agreement. He climbed up on the horse, and I followed the stag through the woods. It chose easy paths for Epona to follow by, and never strayed more than three meters from us. At times, I thought we were going in circles. The trees had started off sprawling and brown, and now it was turning into a deep, brilliant green. The white form of the stag stopped near an overhang of massive trees that curved and grew together to form an archway. It looked back at us expectantly. I walked through the doorway, Link not far behind me. The stag watched as we both headed through the tunnel, and it did not follow us.

Ahead was a beam of golden light. When we reached it, we emerged into a huge clearing. The trees we could see were huge, and had planks of wood nailed into their trunks, leading up to little fortresses. "Someone lives here." I turned and looked at Link. He was staring with huge eyes, and in a low, auspicious tone, he whispered, "Kokiri."

I gasped and turned back to look at the houses. "The fabled people of the woods? But that's…" A tiny, childlike face was peeking down at us from one house. Link slipped off his horse and walked past me. "Can you see those?" I could only hope he could. "Yeah," was his reply. That was a relief. I stayed near Link, watching as more tiny, childlike faces popped up, creeping downward. I could see them more clearly now. They watched us with narrowed, suspicious eyes. Some were even carrying slingshots. I stayed near Link, putting up my hands to show them that we were harmless. Link licked his lips. They got closer now, barely waist high to us.

A petite girl with blond hair crept up to us, watching us. She started speaking in a low, soft voice, but I couldn't understand it. She gestured with her hands, turning them from palm up to palm down. "She wants to see the back of our hands," Link muttered to me. I nodded once, and we showed her our hands. She went quiet, grabbing our left hands and studying the triangular marks. Her face brightened with a smile. She looked up at us and touched our foreheads with her fingertips, talking again and laughing. Link grinned, and looked at me. I grinned back.


	12. Chapter 12

We stayed seated in the clearing. Even though we couldn't understand each other, the Kokiri were only too happy to bring us food and chatter at us. It was mostly vegetables that they brought—carrots, potatoes. Link was working his hypnotism on the animals without even knowing it. Squirrels crept up and nibbled at the bites of food he left. Birds nested on the tree branches closest to him. And even lurking in the woods that surrounded us were yellow-eyed creatures. "Wolves," I muttered, looking at Link.

He paused and looked back at me. "Ah, ye noticed 'em."

I shook my head. "We've always noticed. They follow you. You're a… wolfcharmer." I laughed to myself. Link smiled, embarrassed.

"Why do they do that?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I wish I knew." He stood up and crept to the edge of the woods. The wolves watched him approach. I stood up to get a better look. The biggest one, a massive, grey hound, lowered his tail at Link's approach, watching him suspiciously. Link crouched slowly. I was staring again, watching him move. He reached out his left hand, cautiously, holding the palm towards the wolf. It growled, but paced forward and licked his fingers. Link scratched its ears and patted its large body. He was talking quietly to it, but I couldn't hear. It was amazing to watch. So very much an animal, how could I, with my refined, noble life as a child, not resist someone so different? I snapped out of it when Link was coming back. My food was finished, and I thanked the Kokiri profusely, even if they couldn't understand. They smiled and nodded with me. The leader was gesturing at me, and I stood up with her. She pointed at a house trapped in one tree, and babbled incoherently. I just stared, terribly confused. She laughed in response and made a motion of laying her head on her hands and closing her eyes. Oh- sleeping. I laughed and nodded, showing her that I agreed and understood. She clapped her hands together and wrapped her arms around me in a hug.

Link had come back to us. He smiled at us, the wolf prowling next to our feet. It looked up at us, sniffing my fingers before growling softly and slinking back to Link. Link shot a glare down at him and growled back. He looked back up, focusing a quick gaze on me. His eyes were like lightning. I shivered and looked away. This was almost getting to be too much. Link crouched back down into the dirt, and I joined him. The wolf flopped down on its belly at Link's feet, panting and showing its teeth and tongue. Link scratched behind his ears again. "So, my lady, what should our next move be?" I stared at the ground, unable to speak. So Link spoke for me.

"We should stay the night here. It'll be relatively safe. But they'll be crawling this place, and I'm unsure of how safe it is here. Not to be offensive to these people, but… he'll be able to find us anywhere, if we stay somewhere too long."

I smiled. "You talk like you know him personally." Link stared at me hard for several minutes, until I lifted my head and met his wolf's gaze. "Don't we?"

I unconsciously grabbed my left hand. "Yes." Link leaned towards me. "You and I know that he will hunt us relentlessly, through any means he can find." I closed my eyes, and in flashes of light I could see him. I was paralyzed on a bed, trapped in my own mind, unable to escape. I was his puppet; attacking Link with a sword. I covered my face with my hands. "Hey, hey, don't do that." A warm, comforting hand was on my shoulder, squeezing. "He will hunt us," I whispered.

Link nodded. "Yes, he will. So what should we do, my lady."

I licked my lips. "We'll head to the ocean. I need to contact Ruto. I need to find out what has happened to this place and to my people. She would know." Link ran his fingers through his hair. "But is she trustworthy?"

I closed my eyes. "Of course she is. I know she is. Please, Link, you have to believe me." He rubbed his hands together, taking deep breaths and trying to stay calm. "I believe you, Zelda. I just don't want to risk losing you." Oh, here was a surprise. Link cleared his throat and flexed his fingers. "You're the queen. If you go, all is lost." My poor heart was rejected yet again. "I'm still business," I murmured softly to myself with a smirk.

Link looked at me quizzically. "The ocean," he asked again. I nodded. "I'm positive. Ruto can help us, and I hope that we can help her." Link looked up at the sky. I watched the wolf that lay near him. It looked back at me with its eyes that glowed like gold. I flexed my left hand before slowly reaching out. The wolf sniffed my fingers, then licked them slowly, watching me. I reached up slowly, stroking the wolf's ears. It watched me the whole time. They both did.

The beds we slept on were tiny. I had to curl up with my knees against my chest and my arms around them just to fit under the covers. But it wasn't like they knew we were coming. Link lay on his back, somehow tolerant of the fact that his feet dangled off the edge of the bed and his heels rested on the floor. The beds were barely a foot off the ground. I stretched my legs out a little. "Are you still awake?" Link looked over at me. "Yes."

"I didn't wake you, did I?"

"No."

"Good."

We laid like that in silence for several minutes. Even in the dark, I could see those deadly eyes focusing in on my form. "Why did you want me as your Regent Protector?" I rolled over onto my back, or at least as well as I could. I couldn't face him and talk about it at the same time. "I couldn't stand the men my father wanted me to choose. They were, well, I trusted them because my father trusted them. But they were old." I shifted, getting a cramp. It was either lay straight with my feet on the floor or lay on my side and face him. I settled for the cold floor. "I couldn't connect with them. I figured to myself that if I was going to have to court around with someone, I'd at least want it to be someone a… closer to my own age. If I could connect with them, it might make having to be with someone for so long easier."

"So I was business."

I turned and looked at him. "I remember saying that to you," he said softly. "It wasn't that long ago that I did."

"Is it still business?" I asked him. What was I saying? Was I trying to drive the barbs further? Link shifted. "I have a duty to the Goddesses." His tone was tight and low, not something I was familiar with from him. Business. I sighed and rolled over in bed, away from him, so that I could let my tears well up without him noticing. I was stupid, so stupid. We needed to stick together because it was our fate, our destiny. That was all. As long as I focused on this, it would be alright. And when all this was over, I could find someone to rule the kingdom with me. Someone that I could trust.

I would worry about that later.


	13. Chapter 13

I woke up out of a nightmare. A wolf and a boar were fighting, bloody murder in the middle of the woods. The boar's tusks were gored with blood. The wolf was leaving splatters of blood on the ground and trees that contrasted sharply with the green. But he wasn't losing. The boar was streaked and scarred with wounds of its own. A loud bark and the boar charged with a squeal of fury.

I jerked into sitting up with a scream. Sweat was running down my back, and tears were running down my face. I curled up as I sat there, shaking and gasping for air. I looked around, discovering that I was alone in the room. I climbed out of the bed and peeked out one of the windows. The light was gold and pink with a rising sun, and the green of the forest was muted. I could see Link down on the ground with the wolves. All of them were surrounding him, but not in a hostile way. They lapped at his hands and face. What manner of animal was this wild boy? I watched, fascinated. He was only wearing his breeches, and his hair, from what I could tell, was a mess. They were full of adoration for him. And so was I.

When he came back up to where we had slept, I was combing out my hair. I turned and smiled at him briefly. "Good morning." He replied with similar words. I tied my hair up with the same scrap of ribbon, tucking it out of my face. When I turned back around, he was already putting his shirt on and lacing it up. "To the ocean?" I asked him. Link nodded. "If that sounds good with you." It still did.

We packed up our things, and climbed down to the ground. Link's horse was already waiting, and the wolves were prowling in the forest. "They'll lay themselves o'er our trail. Hide our scents. An' if anythin' finds us anyway, they'll…" He gestured with his hands. I nodded a reluctant agreement, and we climbed up on the horse.

"Wait- wait- we have to say goodbye," I urged him. Link stopped and turned his head. "Yes." I hopped down, and looked at the towering homes. I had no idea which one was hers. So, instead, I took a stick, and drew a large triforce in the ground. I didn't know how that was to do the job, but they recognized it on our hands, so maybe they would recognize its message on the ground. Link helped me back up on the horse, and we walked back through the tunnel. The wolves were there at the entrance. The stag was nowhere to be found. Link was tense, looking around. He looked down to the wolves and whistled once, a sharp sound. They howled and ran off, spreading through the woods ahead of us, sounding off howls. Link followed the closest one, and it howled again, before running off. We traced our path through the entire woods that way, backtracking.

When we burst out into freedom, Link swore. Riders on their boars and ugly, snarling hounds turned and looked at us. I screamed. Link whistled again and wrapped his arms protectively around me. The horse ran fast and hard, thundering over the ground. Around us, I could hear the bombs landing, arrows flying, whistling. The wolves howled and swarmed around the horse, biting and occasionally veering from our circle to attack the relentless hounds, or to bite at the boars' legs. The latter task was more dangerous for them, as the boars lowered their mighty tusks and tried to spear the wolves. It did manage to get one of them in the chest. The wolf yelped with pain.

I looked back, and what I saw alarmed me. There were five riders and ten hounds. The riders weren't that far, and their aim was getting better. Link looked back too, and veered the horse to the right at a sharp angle. The wolves split off from us and jumped up to attack the shooters bearing down on us. Screams of pain, I couldn't tell who was making them. Link looked back and swore. He stroked his horse's neck, whispering to her. "Come on, sweetheart, just keep going." We veered sharply to the left, and it was none too soon. The ground where we'd just been exploded with fury. I glanced to the right and sucked in a breath of horror. A rider had not only caught up to us, but the second rider on his back was holding an arrow, and pointing it at my face. I choked back a scream, and Link pulled me back sharply against his body, putting his shoulder in front of my face not a second too soon. He shouted with anger and pain. I saw the arrow sticking out of his shoulder, and I flinched. "Shit!" I shouted, unable to not. Link gave me a little squeeze. "I'm okay."

I lowered my eyes and looked down at the ground, feeling better when I saw the wolves again. They stayed by us, and the riders dropped off. I kept trying to look back to make sure that we weren't being followed. It did seem, for the time being, that we were alright. Safe. I gripped the horse's mane tight with my hands, hoping I wasn't hurting her. The wolves looked up at us, slowing down. I hoped they were going to be safe.

We were halfway to the ocean now. The sun had moved in front of us. Link was still tight around me, protecting me. The horse's gallop had slowed down, but we were still going. My clothes were damp with horse foam and… something else. I turned my head. Link wasn't protecting me. He was out cold. Our shirts were soaked with blood. I pulled on the horse's mane to settle her down. She reared and fought me, but I got her to stop. I wriggled out of Link's grip down onto the ground, and with a valiant effort, I pulled him down off her back. Link was heavier than I was expecting. He groaned and came to for a few seconds, his eyes hazy. "Link, please. Wake up." He mumbled under his breath. "Please, please." He groaned again, and I got him to at least sit up on his own. I circled around to his back, wincing and holding my breath. I'd always been squeamish. That was why I only went on hunts a few times. I clenched and unclenched one hand, spacing my palm around the wound, bracing it with a thumb and a finger. Finally, I put one hand around the shaft of the arrow, and with a quick, sharp tug, I ripped it free. Link's reaction was shocking. He sat up straight and screamed, arching his back. "Fucking Hell!"

I winced. Link relaxed again, gasping for air. "Are you okay?" I asked softly, with a frown of worry.

"Yes, yes, I'm fine."

I took my hair ribbon down and dabbed at the blood, wiping it away as best I could. When I finished, my torn scrap of fabric was useless as a hair tie. I flung it down on the ground. Link looked back and picked it up, balling it up and putting it in his pants pocket. "Somethin' they can track us by," he muttered. I helped him stand up again. "Do you feel okay?" He shook his head. "It'll heal. I just feel weak."

"You did lose a lot of blood."

Link wiped his lips with one thumb, and shook his head. "No… this is something more. I think those… think they had some sort of poison on the arrows." I felt my heart shudder. "We can live beyond this. We have to." Link nodded slowly. "Let's get to the ocean." The horse was actually quite good for me; she got down on her knees, which made it easier to put Link on her back. I climbed up in front of him again, taking his arms and wrapping them around my waist. I gripped Epona's mane, and nudged her sides hard. She snorted and started running west.

The sun had long set when we got to the ocean. Stars dimly sparkled over the water. Epona snorted and walked slowly over the sand. When we got to the surf, she lowered again, and I slipped off, bringing Link with me. He groaned softly, but was able to sit up.

"We're here," he muttered.

"Yes."

I left him leaning against his horse's body as I walked towards the surf, stripping off my boots. I didn't know how to contact the Zora. We always gave them advance warning, so someone would be waiting here. I stepped into the cold water, gasping and looking down at my right ankle. I had a cut there that I was unaware of, and the salt made it sting painfully. I bit my lower lip and continued walking down into the water. It was frigid, and it made my clothes heavy, but I had no choice. The rocks underfoot were slippery and smooth. I sunk in up to my shoulders, and pushed off the bottom of the ocean, splashing out into the water. I hadn't bathed in ages. It felt amazing to be in water again, cleansing and cool. I closed my eyes and ducked under, bobbing up again and breathing in the clean air deeply. I treaded water for a few minutes, looking up at the sky. My ankle was burning, but I ignored it. "This is foolish," I muttered to myself angrily. I turned and splashed back out of the water, dripping all over. I sat back down in the sand next to Link, giving him a little shake. "Still with me?"

He nodded slowly. "My lady… I am always with you…"

I frowned. "Do not talk like that." Link drew in a deep shuddering breath. "We can survive this."

He opened his eyes and smiled a little at me. "Zelda… can I tell you that, when I said business…"

I shook my head. "I do not want to talk about this. I'm going to find a Zora."

Link touched my leg. "Zelda, please." I stood up, but his hand was on my ankle. "Please. Don't."

I looked at him. "Stay awake, please."

"Yes."

It was the last thing he said for the night.

I stared out at the lapping sea, watching the sky grow darker overhead, but I was out of ideas. It didn't matter--the sound of the water, lapping and splashing, helped me think. Finally, in desperation, I reached out with my left hand and grabbed Link's. A shimmering form of my mother, but clad in blue, stood at the shore, staring into the sea. She turned and smiled at me, then looked at Link. I turned my head. Another doppleganger of my mother, but in green, knelt next to him, her hands on his wound. "We are trying to help him. We can only stave off the poison for so long." I nodded. When I turned my face forward again, my mother in red stood there. She smiled at me. "You need to swim. Swim to the bottom of the ocean, and you will find the Zora." I shook my head. "I cannot breathe underwater."

"Have faith," the three voices said at the same time. I nodded once. "I will try."

"Go now, while We are with you." I nodded again, slowly letting go of Link's hand and climbing back into the water. I paddled out until my feet no longer touched bottom, and then I dove downward, pushing and kicking. I couldn't see anything in the black, and childhood fears rose in my chest, scared of monsters that lurked in the deep. But I kept going, swimming down until my lungs were about to burst. I'm going to die, was my thought as I moved downward. Finally, I gave up, and I turned back upward, bursting to the surface, gasping in lungfuls of air. "I can't do it," I whimpered, closing my eyes. Two heads bobbed up to the surface around me. "Who are you?"

I gasped and looked at them. "Zora! Oh- I'm Queen Zelda." They frowned. Both of them had pale skin, and their eyes had a fogginess in the depths. "You're either very brave or crazy to come to these plagued lands."

"I need to see Ruto!"

They nodded once. "We will bring her to you."

I swam back a few paces until I could touch the bottom, and the Zora dove under again. I glanced back at Link. He looked like he was sleeping, with one hand on his stomach and his head against the side of his horse, who waited patiently. I shivered in the cold. I treaded water until my arms were sore, and finally I heard a splashing from behind me. Turning around, I saw Ruto, flanked by her Zora guards. Her skin was pale and mottled with some kind of growth, and her eyes were cloudier than the guards'. "Zelda?" she asked in a low voice. I nodded, calling out to her. "Yes, it's me." She splashed forward until she was about a foot away, and then in a quick, fluid motion, she slapped me across the face. As I was still reeling from shock, Ruto began a tirade of fury against me. "You bitch! You heartless, self-centered bitch! You fucking abandon your kingdom and let some batshit crazy psychotic Gerudo take over and fuck everything up! What the hell is wrong with you?! I hope the sex is worth it, you low, slimy, whore!" I had my hands to my cheek, and I stared at Ruto in shock. "Goddesses, Ruto, I didn't run off with him!" Ruto folded her arms and glared at me. "So then, what the fuck did you do?" I ran my fingers through my wet hair. "I… it's difficult to explain. Link has been poisoned, can we at least get him to safety?" Ruto snorted. "I'll think about it."

"For how long?"

She looked back. "How long were you gone?" My jaw dropped as she splashed underwater, and the guards followed. I splashed back out and dragged myself to Link's side, my eyes starting to tear up. Stupid- all this risk. We should have stayed in the forest. Link groaned and sat up. "What did she say?"

I shook my head. "She needs to think about it." He frowned. "Don't like the sound of that."

"Neither do I."

He sighed and sat up more. "How are you feeling?" I asked the sand quietly.

"I'm alright, just… dizzy."

I leaned back against the horse, closing my eyes. "Should we find somewhere safer to go? I don't like the thought of being so exposed on this beach." I looked at Link.

"If there's a cave or somethin', otherwise we should just stay here." I looked around the beach, but all I could see in the dark was a flat expanse of sand. I sat back down next to Link and curled up.

I didn't sleep at all that night, and watched the ocean turn gold as the sun rose behind us. Link's breathing was shallow and slow, but at least he was breathing. I could feel my stomach growling again. We, stupidly, hadn't eaten before leaving the woods. I stared out into the ocean, hoping to see someone resurface. "Please, Ruto, help us," I whispered. When the sun rose into the middle of the sky, torturous and hot, I finally stood up and started looking around. No one and nothing. Link's horse snorted and nipped lightly at my pant leg, then at Link's shoulder. I hefted Link up onto her back with some effort, and put my boots back on to walk alongside them.

"Do you know where to find water?" I asked her. It felt foolish to talk to a horse. She tossed her head and lead us back inland a ways, ten or so minutes from where we had perched all night. There was a small, muddy spring. I cupped up the cleanest water and took two greedy drinks, before waking Link up and pulling him down. He scooped water with trembling hands, sipping carefully. "It's good," he muttered.

We drank as much as we could, and Link was able to stand and move on his own. We walked back towards the beach, staring at the glittering water. Link sighed and started to unlace his shirt. "I'm gonna take a wash in th' ocean." I nodded and looked down at the sand. "I'll be here." He nodded and pulled off his shirt, kicking off his boots and walking into the water. His arrow wound was a green color, and I winced when I saw it. We had to get him some medicine as fast as possible. Link swam out and dove under, splashing up and wiping his hair back from his face with his hands. I watched him. I was always watching him. I was in love with him, and I knew it.


	14. Chapter 14

I collected a few small shells on the beach, looking them over as I waited for him to finish washing. When I looked over again, Link was talking to two Zora guards that popped up out of nowhere. Between them was Ruto again. My heart leaped into my chest and I ran forward, splashing into the water. Ruto looked over at me with a cold stare, and refocused on Link, smiling warmly. Oh. So that's what was going on. I swam up reluctantly, lagging behind Link. "We have reconsidered your situation in this time of danger, and are happy to provide room and board for the both of you."

Link smiled with relief. "Thank you, Lady Ruto." She smiled at him and the guards each handed us a bulky mask. "These will help you to breathe underwater until we get to the palace. Some sections of it are in open air, mostly guest bedrooms." I remembered them.

We both murmured our thanks before slipping on the masks. They fit over our nose and mouth, and a large round apparatus on the front was what gave us oxygen. The Zora dived down and we followed them. Now that the sun was out, I could see much better. We swam downward through cloudy blue water, Link lagging behind because of his stinging wound. Ruto swam up and grabbed his good arm, smirking at me and dragging him alongside her. I narrowed my eyes but kept going, keeping up the best I could.

When we got inside the palace, a sprawling coral thing that was half-white in death, Ruto gestured that we could take off the masks. She looked worse in the light. Her skin was mottled with sores and white fungus, and she limped slightly as she walked. The few others we saw milling around the palace looked the same. Ruto lead us through the hall to the guest rooms. "You can stay in any of them that you wish." She was speaking to Link. I frowned. "But for now, I would appreciate if you could join me in the main hall. I want to ask you where you went and why you came back."

It took some time. Ruto hardened her gaze when we explained about the Sacred Realm and the Master Sword. "Prove it," she issued.

Link frowned. "We can't, the swords are on the beach."

Ruto threw up her hands in irritation. "Then go get them!"

Link stood up, and she shook her head. "No, you."

I turned and glared at her. "Excuse me?" Ruto frowned and folded her arms. "No. Send guards to get them."

Ruto and I stared at each other for a few moments, until finally, she conceded. "Very well." Two guards headed back towards the palace doors, and we continued staring at each other.

"Ruto, you have to believe us. You and I have known each other for so long, why would I lie to you?"

Her expression softened. "Zelda, I am bitter. Do you see what is happening to me? My skin, my eyes, my people? There are less than thirty of us left, and we still do not have a cure." She sniffed and cried. "I am sorry, I'm so sorry, Zelda. When you disappeared, Ganondorf promised… he promised a cure if I would only sign off our oceans as part of Hyrule. He… he swore to me we would have a cure." She wiped her eyes with her hands. "I refused. I told him I would rather we die and he take my father's lands by force. That he would have to wrestle them from my dead hands."

I reached across the table and grabbed Ruto's hands. "We will find you that cure." Link rubbed his shoulder, squeezing and flinching in pain. Ruto looked over to him. "Are you alright?" I bit my lower lip. "He got hit with a poison arrow on our way here." Ruto frowned. "You should have told me." She got up and walked around to Link's back, studying it. "I'll see if my doctor can help." Ruto walked off. I reached over and squeezed Link's hand, and he looked at me with a small smile. "It's going to be alright." I pulled my hand away reluctantly and folded my hands together. Ruto was back first with the doctor, an old-looking Zora who was mostly healthy except for some mottling around his lips. He nodded to the both of us and crept around behind Link, studying the wound. "Pah. It's bad, but nothing that can't be cured." I closed my eyes in relief. "He'll need to bathe the wound in hot salt water three times a day. The hot water will keep it clean, and the salt will draw out the poison."

I stood up and thanked the doctor, hugging him with tears in my eyes. Ruto smiled. "Well then, let's have some water put on to heat. Here Link, I'll escort you to the bathrooms. Zelda, you can stay here and rest. I know you've had a long day." She led Link away. Even though she had apologized and seemed truly remorseful for treating me so horribly, I was still appalled at her brazen attempts to collar him. The joke, I figured, was on her; Link seemed impassive towards sexual advances. He certainly had been at the balls we attended. I sighed as I reminisced on that. What a foolish girl I'd been, and still was. I sat up when the guards returned, carrying our swords, bags, and Link's remaining clothes. I thanked them, putting the items in a neat pile on the table, and picking up the Master Sword. It was not as heavy as I thought. I held it out in front of me, looking the blade over, trying out slow swings and thrusts. Despite its lightness, my arms soon grew weak, and I set the revered blade back down. Ruto came back and nodded at me. "If you wish, you may bathe too." I shook my head. "I feel clean from the water." She nodded her head once and sat back down at the table with me, stopping and looking at the Master Sword. "So it was all the truth."

"Yes."

Ruto touched the holy blade with two fingers. "I am sorry for my doubts. But I was suspicious, after the rumors Ganondorf's army spread about how you were planning to secretly elope. He claimed you'd fallen out of virtue to Link, and had gotten pregnant by him. At least, that was what he told us fellow diplomats." I stared at her, and she looked back. "Zelda. I should never have doubted you."

"No, you shouldn't have." I was full of cold fury at Ganondorf's blatant lies. "I am a woman of my word, Ruto, and of honesty. You should have known that! You should have remembered that!"

"It's this damned disease, Zelda! I haven't been able to think clearly in years, because this Goddesses-damned plague is in my head!" Tears rolled down her cheeks. "I… I have nightmares at night, about Ganondorf making me his bride. He rapes me in those dreams, Zelda. He… and I fall pregnant by him, and the child we have is a demon. I wake up in cold sweats. I dream and I see you, and you are laughing at me as…" Ruto shook her head and refused to elaborate. I reached out and held her hands tight. "Ruto. I am here, and I am willing to help. We have to get rid of Ganondorf for good." She nodded. "I will help you anyway I can." I looked down at the table. "Thank you."

We ate fish and oysters, and some sort of salad made from underwater plants. Link had a bit of color in his face from the food and the hot bath. "Ruto, have you heard from the Gorons at all?" She shook her head, chewing. "Not in ages. Have you tried to contact them?"

"We can't go back to Death Mountain. Some of the villagers in Kakariko betrayed us to Ganondorf."

Ruto narrowed her eyes in fury and insult. "That's despicable!" She shook her head. "Stay here as long as you need, I insist. Both of you. I'll see to it that you have food and clothing, and somewhere to sleep." I thanked her. Link smiled and thanked her as well. We had to stay anyway, if only for his sake; I was unsure of how long it would take until the poison had seeped from his wound. When we had finished with our meals, Ruto again escorted us to her guest rooms. "I am sorry for having to take my leave so suddenly, but my sickness is taking its toll, and I must lie down."

"That's alright, Ruto. We completely understand," I replied, smiling. Ruto nodded and hugged us both before turning and walking slowly towards her bedroom.

I looked at Link. "How is your shoulder?"

"It's a little stiff. I'll probably wash it again before bed." We stood there for a few minutes in silence.

"I'm not tired," I said finally.

"Neither am I," Link replied. I finally opened the door to my guest room and sat down on the bed as Link followed me in and sat in a chair. "Well, what should our next move be?" I folded my legs under my body and looked at him. Link rubbed his lips with his thumb. "I say when we're all rested up, we go to Death Mountain again." I shook my head. "Why would we? We'd just be wasting our time, possibly getting caught again." He frowned. "Well this time, we just won't tell anyone we're there."

"Then why would we go?" Link shrugged his shoulders and flinched, gripping his bad shoulder. I sighed. "We have many enemies, don't we." Link nodded his agreement. "But we still have allies. The Gorons, if they have not all been killed."

"How could they help us?"

"We just need them to know we're here. Maybe it'll help them have faith, Zelda. That's what we need right now."

I nodded. Going to see the Gorons meant heading back north, past the castle. It would be risky for the both of us. If we were spotted, Ganondorf could kill us both easily. "You know we'll have to head back past the castle."

Link set his jaw, and his eyes blazed. "Yes. I am prepared to take that risk, if contacting our allies means we will have that much help for storming the castle." I stared. We had been stepping around the issue of reclaiming the castle for some time. But it was obviously our only choice to send an attack on Ganondorf. And that was why we raced around Hyrule so desperately, to enlist their help. The Kokiri had granted it. My old guards in Kakariko had sworn it, though they betrayed us. And Ruto had sworn her alliance when she took us in. "We can defeat him, Zelda." Link said softly. "We have before." I smiled. "Yes."

A silence hesitated in the room, laying thick between us. It would be a good time to tell him what I felt, to confess to him that I was in love with him, and had been since the first moment his fierce blue eyes had locked with mine. Finally, I made up my mind. "Link?" When I looked up, he had gone.


	15. Chapter 15

I laid awake in bed for a little while, staring at the ceiling. I wanted to tell him now, in case something happened on our travels. But after that one, initial, brave moment, I couldn't muster up the courage, not at breakfast or lunch or tea. I kept quiet, resolving to tell him while we were alone. Ruto's mood swings were more or less a constant factor. She would go from glaring and snapping at her few guards, to crying about how she hated her life, to flirting with Link, and back again. It was exhausting just to be around her, and so I kept quiet and complacent. Link was looking more and more healthy each day, and that was a great relief to me. Soon, we would be able to leave, and I could tell him how I felt.

I wandered by the bathing rooms the fourth night of our stay, on my way back from one. It felt good to have my hair fully combed again, and my skin was scrubbed until it took on a subtle glow. I was wrapped in a heavy, borrowed, cotton robe, with my hair half-dry and hanging loose down my back. On my way past one room, I saw Link inside, dabbing at his shoulder. He was bare-chested, with his back to the door, and sitting on a low stool. He wasn't quite able to make it to the cut, and instead would squeeze water over his back, which resulted in his breeches getting rather wet.

I knocked lightly on the door, and when he saw it was me, he waved me in. "Good eve, my lady," he said casually, dipping the rag in water again.

"Good eve," I responded. I watched him try again to clean the cut, and as he struggled, I stepped up and took the rag. "Here."

I crouched behind him and dabbed lightly at the cut. He hissed and swore, apologizing after. "It's alright, I would be in pain too." I carefully wiped the wound, wrinkling my nose as green droplets of poison welled up on his skin. I took my own wet rag and wiped them away. We sat in silence, and I privately admired Link's bare skin. He broke the hypnosis with a question: "If we're successful, what will you do after Hyrule is reclaimed?" I thought on it for some time. "I… will start to rebuild the kingdom, and try to find a suitable husband to rule alongside me."

Link nodded. I wondered what he would do if I kissed his shoulder, his neck, his hair. "What about you?" Link turned his head slightly to look at me. "I'd… go back to my parents' home, clean it up, fix it up, start their farm again." I nodded. "You wouldn't stay as my regent protector? Am I that much of a burden?" I grinned, teasing him.

"Well, if you get a husband, what's the point of me staying?" He sounded angry, and I went back to cleaning his wound. "Well, I just like having you around," I muttered. Link went silent again. "Ah." I finished cleaning his shoulder and handed the rag back, standing up. Link turned around, and his face was uncertain. "Zelda, I was always honored that you chose me to be your Regent Protector, no matter why you might have asked it of me." I nodded slowly, holding my clothes protectively to my chest. "I'll see you tomorrow morning, Link." I turned and walked out, hurriedly.

A few days later, the doctor declared Link fit for travel. Ruto hugged us both tightly as we thanked her and wished her health. "Promise me that if you need anything, you'll get ahold of me."

"We'll try," I promised, hugging her frail body tight. We put on the masks she gave us, sinking into the water with our parcels now wrapped in water-tight bags, and wearing the clothes we arrived in, so that our new things wouldn't get ruined. Epona wasn't right at the shore, but she came when called for. Link kissed her muzzle and stroked her mane. "Good girl, Epona," he murmured to her. He helped me climb up, and hopped up behind me, directing the horse due east. "Okay girl, to Death Mountain."

We skirted around the edge of the woods as we ran back towards the heart of Hyrule. I would sneak the occasional glance at the forest, trying to look for wolves and assure myself that they survived. Once or twice I saw yellow eyes, but not often. Link didn't push his horse too hard; I was worried she hadn't the opportunity to rest up as well as we had. But we made good time. By the end of our first day on the run, we'd left the ocean behind. The castle was a distant speck on the horizon, barely visible. Link settled us down and prepared a small fire after catching two small rabbits. I was glad to see some other form of meat than fish.

I wondered, dare I tell him tonight? Or should I wait? Link cooked the rabbits quickly and we ate them with our fingers, peeling the meat right from the bone. We spoke very little, Link staring into the fire and fingering the sharp edge of the Master Sword. It seemed to take on a holy glow, as if it were eager to fight and slay our worst enemy.

"A tool of the Goddesses," he muttered, looking at it. "Do you know the legend behind this holy artifact?" His eyes met mine.

"Yes." I replied softly. "And I know what that same sword is capable of."

He looked back to the holy blade, and set it down on the grass reverently. I looked up at the sky. The moon was out, a thin crescent among the stars. The warmth of the fire felt good upon my face, as the night was getting cold. Link unhooked his cloak and laid it on the ground. "I'll keep watch tonight," he offered.

"I'll stay up with you," I countered, looking at him.

He grinned a bit. "You should sleep, your majesty."

I rolled my eyes. "All I've done is sleep and eat this whole time. Not once have I fought for anything. I'm sick of being pampered."

Link nodded. "I can understand that."

I looked at him hard for a moment, before standing up, bringing my borrowed sword with me. "Teach me."

Link raised his eyebrows. "What?"

"Teach me how to use a sword. I don't really know how." He smiled and stood, holding the Master Sword at his side. "Alright." He rubbed his chin. "The first thing you should know about swordplay is how to hold it. Now, that sword is a one-hander because of the length o' the handle an' the length of the blade." He walked over and showed me how to grip the sword with one hand. "When you get ready to attack someone, you hold the sword out like this…" He showed me, and I copied as best as I could. Link put his sword down and moved over, fixing my posture. I couldn't ignore how gentle he was with me. "There, hold it like that…"

He was a good teacher, or at least, I thought so. Link was patient, willing to let me practice over and over again at different types of swings and thrusts. It didn't take long for my arms to get sore. I laughed and set the sword down, flexing my aching hands. "I am not much good with a sword yet. I'm quite out of practice." Link grinned. "No, no, you did fine. If you want, we can practice more tomorrow night. If you are not too sore, at least." I smiled. "Were you sore when you learned how to fight?" We both sat down again near the fire, which had turned to embers. "Yes," he admitted. "The captains that taught me emphasized good stretches. It didn't help much at first."

I laughed. "At least teach me those!" Link nodded his agreement, and I copycatted him again, able to feel a tense pain in my muscles already. "Hold it for a few minutes… and let go." After the stretches, my arms felt like warm butter. "They'll still be sore in the mornin', but blame only yer lack of sword use, not me." He looked into the glowing ash. "Go on to sleep, my lady. I'll keep watch o'er you." I'd been yawning without realizing it, and now that I did, I curled up under my cloak on top of his, using my arm as a pillow. "I'll see you in the morning," I muttered sleepily.


	16. Chapter 16

In the morning, my arms ached. I could barely lift them without wanting to cry. Link had to forcibly grab my arms and stretch the muscles for me, letting me bite into some fabric so I would not scream. He squeezed the muscles, rubbing deep into their cores with his thumb. I nearly hated him for how much it hurt, until he was finished and I found out how much it had actually helped. I gave my arms a final stretch before getting up. Link had some cold rabbit meat left from last night, and we ate what little there was before climbing back up on the horse. Again, he wrapped his arms around me. I wondered why he wouldn't just let me ride behind him with my arms around his waist instead, and he could have a closer grip on the horse's mane. But I wasn't actually bothered by being pressed so close to him, so I chose not to ask him why we rode this way. The thought that it was for defense also came to mind. I closed my eyes and let myself enjoy it. We settled much closer to the castle that night. I could actually see some of the turrets, although not much of the damage. As Link built a small fire to cook the fat little pheasants he caught, I stared at my former home with sadness.

"It'll be about two more days b'fore we're at the castle," Link said. He'd taken a cooking pan from his home, and we plucked the two little pheasants together, Link skinning them with a small dagger. I felt my heart lurch. I had to tell him. But not tonight. "An' then two more days, we'll be at Death Mountain." I nodded and handed him my plucked little bird. "After we eat, if ye want, we can do more sword practice." I shrugged my shoulders. "Only if it doesn't bother you."

"Not at all! I actually… well, it's better'n us just sittin' around an' doin' nothin', an' I don't mind it. Not a bit."

"Just don't wear out my arms this time," I warned, shaking my finger at him. Link smirked and shook his head. "Nah, nah, it'll be easier now that you've had a day." So we ate, and cleaned up, and as the fire was burning low and the moon got more full, we practiced with swords again. I watched him sitting by the glowing ash as I lay on the ground, trying to fall asleep. It wasn't fair, I thought. When did he get to sleep? "Link, I would be happy to take over watch for a night. You never rest, and that is all I do."

He looked over at me and smiled. "It's alright."

I sat up with a frown. "No it's not. It's so much strain on you. Please, I insist." I got up from the cloaks, pulling mine off and pointing to the spot where I'd been.

Link sighed and shook his head. "Are you sure?"

I nodded. "Yes."

He crawled over to the cloaks, laying down. "Wake me up if you hear or see anythin' suspicious. Promise?"

"You have my word."

Link curled up on his side, and I gently wrapped my cloak over him, before taking up a watch by the dying fire. It was more peaceful than I'd expected. Now and again there was the soft hoot of owls, or the high-pitched chatter of bats overhead. I did feel a little sleepy at parts, but when I did, I would pick up my sword and start to practice my moves. I was not going to stand aside and be a passive girl. I was going to fight, be a battle queen. Hopefully, Link would be by my side. When the sun was coming up, and the sky was still soft and grey, I looked over at the object of my affections. He was completely out, breathing softly. His eyebrows were knitted with worry. I crept over, kneeling next to him. When he wasn't focusing his gaze on me, it was easy to rehearse what I wanted to say. I sighed and stood up, stretching my legs to keep me awake. As the sky turned pink and gold, a new day, I smiled. I took up Link's bow and arrow, and snuck into the brush, trying to keep low.

Link woke up while I was trying to skin the animals. He sat up, rubbing his eyes and looking over at me. I tensed and scratched a spot under my eye, finding with disappointment that it was now wet with blood. "Ye've never done this before," he said immediately.

I shook my head. "Am I that obvious?"

Link shook his head. "No, I just suspect it because, after all, you're a queen. This sort o' thing is a little… low class, isn't it?"

I frowned and leaned back. "What does that matter? I'm hardly a queen until Ganondorf is dead. So why do I care about activities that are low class?"Link bit his lip and looked away. I stared at the grass, and my kill. "I don't care about class difference. I never have. I've always tried to do the best thing for all my people." I flexed my hands and straightened.

Link took up the small dagger and started to skin the squirrels I caught. "I know you have, Zelda. That's why you're a good queen."

"I'm NOT-

"Not yet." He stood up, staring me down. "You will be queen again. I will do everything in my power to make that happen." Link stepped forward, stopped, hesitating. He looked away and went back to the food, stoking the fire and relighting it with a flint, using grass to feed the small flames. I sat down near the fire, wiping the blood on my hands off onto the ground. "For what it's worth, I think that learning how to swordfight and prepare animals are more useful skills than dancing or learning the proper fork to a meal."

Link looked over at me and chuckled. "They certainly sound more useful."

Again, the endless running. As we got closer towards the castle, the land got even more grey and cracked. Grass grew sparser, the land dried out. Food would be the hardest to find yet. I could feel Link's heart pounding against my back, smooth and steady. I closed my eyes. I could lose myself listening to that heartbeat. That would be true peace. "Some day, I want to be done with all this running," I murmured.

Link leaned forward, his lips near my ear. I shuddered when I felt them brush the edge. "What did you say?"

"Nothing. I… I'm just tired of running in circles."

"So'm I," he replied quietly. Link sat back, and I sighed. And there we were, skirting around the edge of the castle. We were still far from it though; the guards that crawled its perimeter were dark smudges. Link wrapped himself protectively around my body. "Steady, girl," he muttered. But I wasn't sure if he was talking to me, or the horse. I watched the dark figures that milled around the broken and battered walls. I felt tears in my eyes again, and I held my breath. My beloved home, how I worried about it.

"It's not my home anymore," I whimpered, putting a face to my hand.

Link put a hand on my shoulder. "Don't do this to yourself. This will be your home again."

I wiped my eyes. "I'm sorry, I'm bloody sorry, I'm just panicking."

"Stay calm. Stay. Calm."

We passed the castle fast, giving it a wide berth. It would add time to our travel, but it was necessary. Link's heart was racing against my back. He was nervous too. It was connecting, in a strange way. Listening to his heart, knowing that he wasn't just a tool of the Goddesses, but that he was very much a human, like myself. It'd been keeping me from telling him how I felt. It was easy to put him on a pedestal when he came up with the plans, killed and cooked our food, saved my life. But he was just as nervous and scared as myself. It was humanizing.


	17. Chapter 17

We ran until the sun was setting, and the mountain was ahead of us, a dark smudge. We were only halfway past the castle. I exhaled, surprised because I didn't know I'd been holding my breath. Link squeezed me with his arms. "We're safe now." I shook my head. "No we're not. The hard part is just over."

"Ye think this is the hard part?" He chuckled in my ear. "We haven' faced 'im yet."

Our routine was getting tiresome. Link handed me the bow and arrow again. I tossed hair out of my eyes and looked at him. "I don't move like you. You've got… a way with animals. When you charm them, when you hunt them." Link raised his eyebrows. "You want to learn to hunt?"

"The way you do, yes."

He grinned, his hands on his hips. "You make your mark before you even see the animal." He handed me my sword. "You believe that you're going to catch something." I nodded. "I can't really teach you, but I can show you." He took the bow and arrow, and crouched low, notching it. "Watch." He pointed at a spot in the brush. "There will be a rabbit there." I knelt down, peering over his shoulder. Link crept forward, aiming at that spot, moving slowly. "Wait for it," he whispered. Again, a slow step forward, and then-

I gasped and covered my mouth with my hands. Link had fired his shot, and the rabbit was caught in the throat. I stared, and my stomach turned as the rabbit kicked pathetically in its death throes. Link stepped forward and pulled the arrow out, picking the poor animal up and snapping its neck. That was enough for me. I turned away and dry-heaved, sitting and putting my head between my knees with tears in my eyes. I hadn't snapped the squirrels' necks. I went up to them, and there was so little blood that it was easy to think of them as little dolls, childrens' toys with beady eyes.

Link set the rabbit next to a patch of dry ground. "Hey, are you alright?" I turned and looked at him. "Yes, I'm just feeling a little queasy." He sat down next to me. "Take a deep breath. It will be okay." I laughed, and looked back at the castle. "We're still kind of close to it, aren't we?" Link frowned. "Yeah, a little close for comfort. But we'll do okay." I turned and looked at him, thinking it over, seriously considering it. Just three words, that was all I needed. Link sighed and moved away, walking off to gather branches. I stood up, tears in my eyes, and walked in the other direction to help him. I was never going to be able to tell him the truth. We would just go on with our lives, and I would find someone else.

I gripped the dry branches tightly in my fingers, the rough bark digging in and keeping me from feeling the pain in my heart. He was relentless at tearing me open, just when I thought I was healed up. I bent down and picked up a branch, stopping when I felt a deadly silence surround me. That feeling of being monitored, studied. I felt it twice before, in the house. With my eyes wide open, I realized I felt it every time Link looked at me. Holding the branches to my chest, I whipped around.

Link grabbed me by the arms and pinned me up against a tree. I dropped my sticks with a gasp of surprise, and it was cut off when he kissed me. That first kiss was violent in its fury, in its hunger. "How long have you been waiting?" I asked with a gasp when he pulled back.

"Long enough," he growled, focusing his wild eyes on my face. His hands were on my face, a thumb on my lower lip. I closed my eyes, swallowing, able to feel his fingers on my throat. He leaned down slower now, kissing me again, taking his time. I opened my mouth to reciprocate, and his teeth nibbled my lip, testing their texture. He wrapped his hands around and ran his fingers through my hair, untangling the blond mess. I put my hands up on his shoulders, testing the muscles in his shoulders under the thin fabric. I wanted to know him, all of him. Link kissed me again and again, using his grip in my hair to turn my head to suit him. I grabbed his chest and pushed him back, panting. Link was grinning, his smile wide, his teeth showing. More than ever now, he looked feral. A wolf, moving in on the kill.

"You're very forward, aren't you?" I dared to ask.

Link chuckled. "Sorry about that, my lady." I pulled him in again by his shirt, kissing him back on my terms. He groaned and pressed up against me, and I licked lightly at his lips until he parted them, and we kissed deeper. This was the sort of thing that people, all people, just knew how to do. We broke our kiss again, and I smiled, sheepish and relieved. "I've been waiting to do this for a long time," he murmured, stroking my hair and kissing my forehead.

I shook my head, still smiling. "How long?" He smirked, pulling my shirt free from my pants and reaching up under to put his rough hand on one breast. I hadn't been wearing a corset since I put my dress away. I shivered and took a step back, intent on asking him what he was doing when I could think again. He followed, reaching down and taking one of my hands to put it at his waistline, encouraging me to do the same to him.

"I don't want to wait another moment to be with you," he whispered hoarsely as I pulled his shirt up and off. I wrapped my arms around his waist, kissing him once or twice before he had a chance to pull my shirt off, leaving me bare-chested. He chuckled and kneeled, bringing me down with him onto the ground. He kissed my mouth again, and moved on to my neck and then chest, running his hands up and down my bare sides. I clutched his shoulders, awe-struck with excitement. Link pulled me into his lap, straddling his waist, and undid my poor excuse for a belt.

"What are you doing?" I asked with a little smile.

Link put his hands up on my back, hugging me close before he kissed my collar bone and went back to undoing the rest of our clothes. "Something that's been on my mind for a while." As he eagerly tried to resume his task, I grabbed his hands and held them up. "Tell me. Why now?" Link was at a loss, staring into my face. "Because if something happens while we storm the castle, and I lose you, I will never forgive myself for not acting on this. And this might be our last night with peace." I stroked his hair. "Link, I have felt the same way for the longest time." He grinned. "I figured you did, seein' as you didn' push me away when I kissed you." I laughed and hugged him around the neck.


	18. Chapter 18

**AN: THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER IS SEXUALLY EXPLICIT IN NATURE. BY MOVING ON TO READ THIS CHAPTER, YOU ARE SAYING THAT YOU ARE OF LEGAL AGE IN YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE TO VIEW SEXUALLY EXPLICIT MATERIAL. THE CREATORS OF FANFICTION . NET AND MYSELF WILL NOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE IF YOU ARE FOUND TO HAVE VIOLATED THIS NOTICE. **

There was a fire in his eyes as he looked up at me again. Link turned his head down and kissed the skin between my breasts, running his hands down my back and pushing my breeches down. I maneuvered to half-stand, to make it easier for them to fall off and be out of the way. Link took this opportunity to undo his pants and pull them down as well, before pulling my legs back around his waist and kissing my mouth. His erection twitched between our bodies. Link muttered and directed me with one hand to lift my body up, his other hand going to his shaft and positioning it under me. I hesitated, propping myself up into a half-crouched position as Link reached up with his fingers and stroked my wet cleft, sliding a finger inward. It pinched only slightly, and I gasped in shock.

"Have you practiced, or something?" I asked softly. Link laughed but didn't properly answer, his face warm with embarrassment. He put a second finger inside of my body, gently curling and stroking. I dug my nails into his shoulders and breathed harshly through my teeth. He kissed my shoulder and neck, and put his penis up against my cleft, wrapping both arms tightly around my waist as he thrusted upwards. I flinched in pain and raked my nails across Link's shoulders. "Sorry, sorry," he whispered with a kiss to my neck. I shook my head. "It's okay, I just wasn't expecting it." He held me tight around the waist once more with his rough hands and pulled me down on top of him. I felt a strange, quick, snapping inside of my vagina, something I did not expect. It didn't hurt like I was expecting, but it definitely felt strange. Link shuddered and tilted my head down, kissing my lips hungrily as he started moving, thrusting his hips up and down.

"Tell me if it hurts," he whispered in my ear. I shook my head. It did hurt, of course, but it hurt in a good way. This was what I wanted, what I needed to feel. I rocked with him, rolling my hips up and down, trying to find what was a comfortable pace for the both of us. Link put his hands on my hips, grabbing hold and controlling them to show me what he liked. In turn, I ran my fingers through his hair and mumbled nonsense words of pleasure. He stroked my back with his fingertips, nibbling at the pointed edge of my ear. His breathing was getting heavy, and as I relaxed my body, I got used to the feeling of his shaft inside of me. His one hand moved to wrap around my butt, and he took my other hand up, kissing the fingers before moving his lips to my breast and biting one nipple. I flinched, not expecting that. Link growled playfully against my skin, pulling back and whispering up at me, "Speed up, I'm getting close." I raised an eyebrow and smirked at him. "What about me, your beloved queen? Shouldn't I matter?" Link laughed outright, kissing where my heart fluttered in my chest. "Don't worry, my lady. I'll see to it that you are satisfied." His free hand slipped between our bodies and down between my thighs, reaching into my cleft and searching carefully, probing for something. When he found it, he knew from my reaction; my whole body tightened for a second in surprise. "Mmm," he groaned, "do that again."

"I don't know how," I admitted sheepishly.

Link smirked. "I found a way." He searched around with one finger again until he found the hard, sensitive nub once more, and I flinched again with a little squeak. "There we go," he whispered, kissing along the tops of my breasts. He wriggled his finger about in a random motion, first slow, then fast, then in a circle. I tensed in reaction at his every touch, and he approved of this heartily. Link continued to manipulate my body in this way, and I could feel a tension rising in my gut, an excitement that made my heart pound and the back of my neck go prickly with sweat. I picked up the speed, riding him like on horseback, and he did not stop working my sensitive maidenhead even after he swore in a loud whisper and grabbed me around the shoulders, hugging me tight against his chest. I felt his shaft twitching inside of me, even more so when my sensitive body contracted around it in my own rush of orgasm. Link held me with both arms, his damp forehead pressed against my collarbone. I put both hands up and stroked his hair, breathing hard. My hunger and exhaustion was forgotten. We rested that way for a few minutes, Link's penis softening inside of me, my heart throbbing in time with my sore body. After a few minutes, I got up so that he would fall out, and I sprawled back down in his lap. He kissed my chin, and I turned my head down to kiss him back. I lingered on his lips for a few moments, my eyes closed, trying to regain my self-control. After a long pause, and when our breath had gone calm again, I whispered, "Can we do that again?" Link shook his head with a laugh. "Well, yeah, but I'm going to need some time before I can."

I laughed this time. "Alright, I think I can wait a few minutes." Link kissed me again before I moved aside to let him stand up. He laid out a cloak on the grass, getting the second one and waving me over to lay next to him. I curled up on the rough fabric on my back, and he stretched out on his side, stroking my cheek. "So it wasn't entirely business," I half-asked, looking at him. He grinned sheepishly. "You've caught me there." I laughed, until he leaned down to kiss me again. "Link," I ventured, looking into his face.

He looked back. "Yes?"

"I want you to rule with me. Please."

"Are you asking me to be king?"

I nodded. Link rolled onto his back, tucking his hands behind his head and staring up at the murky sky. "Yes. If we survive this, if we win, I'll gladly be your king." I smiled.

He turned back over and pulled me close again, kissing my mouth and stroking my hip. We laid like that for a little while, kissing softly and touching each other's skin, until Link climbed over top of me with a gleam in his eye. I held my breath as he kissed me again, reaching down and swiping two fingers into my cleft, before spreading my legs and inching his way up until I could feel his recovered erection probing at my womanhood. I shivered and wrapped one leg up around his waist, and Link kissed my forehead as he thrusted in. It hurt much less this time, perhaps because I knew what was coming. He put his head down, hair hanging in his face, and thrusted slowly, in time with his heartbeat. I wrapped one arm around his shoulders to keep him close, and he braced himself up with one hand as we made love. He took longer this time, kissing the curve of my throat, stroking the palm of my free hand, murmuring words of worship into my breasts. I closed my eyes and learned to enjoy the feeling of another person inside of me, dominating over me. Link was attentive and relaxed, the most laid-back I'd ever seen him. He came again inside of me, and while I didn't find my own release, I didn't need to. Link rested his face on my chest, breathing hard and cupping one breast gently. I stroked his hair, staring up at the cloudy sky. Our legs tangled together under the blankets. Before long, Link fell asleep, snoring quietly. I laid awake all night, toying idly with locks of his hair.


	19. Chapter 19

When the sun came up, I slipped out of Link's grasp and crept to my clothes, pulling them back on. I gathered up his as well and put them next to him. My body felt sore; I finally used muscles I'd long been neglecting. The rabbit had been forgotten about, and flies buzzed over its body. I turned away with an unpleasant grimace. Straightening, I looked around the land, sighing when I saw the castle. Next time I saw it, I would be bearing down upon its walls, aiming for attack. I sighed and rubbed my arms with my hands to warm them against the cold chill. A premonition? Maybe. Link groaned behind me, and I turned around to look at him. He was sitting up, and his wound from the arrows had mostly healed and scabbed over. He turned around and nodded once in my direction. I turned and sat down on the ground next to him. "Are you ready to go?"

"Eh, at least let me dress first."

I laughed. "Probably not a good idea to go riding horseback nude."

Link chuckled and shook his head as he grabbed his pants and stood up to put them on. I respectfully averted my gaze. He finished dressing and called over Epona. We wrapped up our clothes and climbed on, too nervous to be hungry. Link sat behind me again, but he sat closer, and wrapped one arm around my waist. I found the close contact comforting, and I wrapped my hand over his as we ran.

I kept looking over the castle. I couldn't help it, I was feeling on edge. And for good reason, too.

It wasn't long before riders came after us, but it wasn't shrunken little goblins on boars. These were massive suits of armor astride armored, jet black horses. They waved enormous broadswords in the air in our direction. Epona screamed and ran faster, but they were still catching up. Link swore and unsheathed the Master Sword, and it caught the sun, gleaming like a diamond.

"Zelda! Get yer sword out!"

I nodded, crouching low against Epona's neck as I pulled my sword from my belt. The guards flanked either side of us, edging in. Link gripped a handful of Epona's mane and jerked her to the left, swinging his weapon at the head of the knight. The knight wavered, but returned the blow. Link caught it with the Master Sword, gritting his teeth and having to use both hands to hold his blade steady. I turned to the right and brought my sword up to deflect the powerful swing by the knight there. It wasn't a very good swing of mine, but it was enough to knock his blade off balance. Link shouted and broke contact, swinging the Master Sword over his head and gritting his teeth as it met the side of the knight's blade. I lifted my arm to deflect the next swing from the knight to our right, but I didn't move fast enough, and he slashed at my side.

Pain and a thin line of blood flared instantly and spread. I gasped and clutched the wound for a second, pulling my hand away and seeing the ribbon of blood. I grabbed Epona's mane and swung her to the other side, Link losing contact with his knight. He reached around and grabbed Epona's mane, whipping her back towards the left and pulling so she would slow down. The knights stumbled a few yards ahead of us and turned around, but we were running left. Towards the castle. "Link, go right!!" I screamed.

"Not yet!" he hollered back. We beared down on the castle, catching the eye of other riders, who started taking up the chase. Now he jerked right, thumping his heels into Epona's sides. "Run, girl! Run!" Epona was doing her best, but she was no match when the guards got her left hip. She screamed and kicked, stumbling to the right, regaining her balance, and limping. Another guard came running up to her right and swung, cutting her on the front leg. Epona screamed, reared, and fell. We tumbled off her, Link wrapping his arms protectively around my body and taking the brunt of the fall on his back. I got up and helped him up, only to be knocked down by the flat of a blade hitting my back. Link grabbed the Master Sword again and drove it into an uncovered spot on the rider's horse. The horse screamed and reared, throwing its knight. The other rider hopped down, and two others ran up, also hopping down. Link struggled to his feet, barely dodging as one aimed to punch him in the face.

"Zelda, stay down!" he shouted. I stabbed at the knights who kept reaching for me, but my muscles were poorly developed, and one knocked my blade aside and walked up, grabbing me by the throat and squeezing. I gasped for air, clawing desperately at his hands. Link looked over and bellowed, "LET HER GO!" He stepped forward, and the knight pointed his sword at my heart, pricking the skin in a tiny dot. "Step forward and she dies," a low, hissing voice growled. Link stopped, blood running from a gash in his forehead and a split in his lip. The knight loosened his grip on my throat, and I sucked in lungful after lungful of air. "Ganondorf has requested her presence at his castle. If you follow, you both will die."

Link hesitated, looking at me. I could only nod once. "Go, please. Go to… that place, and tell them." He looked away, furious, growling every swear under the sun. I closed my eyes and went limp on the guards. They weren't happy, but I was submitting to their commands, albeit as unwilling as possible. I was propped up onto an armored horse, and the knight hopped up behind me. "Go after him and kill him," he ordered a second one. I jolted upwards and started struggling, trying to hop off the horse and run after Link. The knight grabbed me by the arms and struck me in the back of the head, and I passed out.

When I woke up again, I was on a bed in a dismal room. I groaned and sat up, a wave of dizzyness throwing me right back down again. The doors to the room were shut, and I had no doubt that they were locked. I was still dressed, that was a relief. My clothes were smeared with blood, and while the gash in my side had quit bleeding, it still burned with pain. I forced myself up, and I wobbled uneasily to my feet, looking around. There wasn't much to the room besides the bed, and a tiny window. I ran to it and looked out, but all I could see was dead ground and the distant image of Death Mountain. No sign of Link, dead or alive. I sat down on the bed again, unable to stop trembling in worry and fear. What was Ganondorf planning? Was Link safe? Sitting wasn't helping to calm me down, so instead I paced nervously around the perimeter of the room. On my third or so lap around the room, the door abruptly opened and a knight stepped in, bearing a sword. He observed that I was indeed awake, and nodded. "His Lord Majesty wishes to see you."

I followed the guard through my old castle, not realizing until we got to the main hall that I'd been staying in my old room, of when my father was alive. We arrived before the throne, which Ganondorf had redesigned in stately black lacquer and white satin pillows. He looked up when he saw me and smiled. "Zelda! I'd been wondering where you'd gone all these years. Gallivanting with a farm boy, not something I would have pegged you as doing." I clenched my teeth and stared at him with hate. Ganondorf noticed and shook his head. "Don't look so resentful. I spared you your life. Do you know why?"

I did. "Because we made a deal," I replied. Ganondorf nodded. "We made a deal." He stood from his throne and walked towards me, grinning. I couldn't help but flinch and step backward, poking myself on the knight's sword tip that I did not know was there. "Do you know why I want to keep that deal?"

"No."

Ganondorf sighed and clasped his hands together with the forefingers extended and pressed to his lip. "Well." He thought for a moment, brows knitted together. I waited patiently. "Not only do I wish to uphold our deal," I glared, but he held up a hand for patience, "but also, I will not live forever. Certainly, I will come back again and again, in different forms and places, but while I am here and now, I desire to rule this country as long as possible, even if it requires… offspring." He looked at me meaningfully, and my eyes widened.

"You remember that part of our deal was that you are to never touch me!" I shouted at him angrily.

Ganondorf grinned. "The deal has changed then, hasn't it, princess?" I flexed my hands and growled in my throat. Ganondorf merely laughed. "Don't worry, I'll be gentle." The thought of his hands on my body made me shudder, and I wrapped my arms protectively around my body.

"You remember that if you touch me, I said I would kill myself," I replied in a cool tone.

Ganondorf frowned. "You wouldn't dare."

"Are you so willing to test that theory?"

I watched anger flicker over his face, a stone thrown in the pond of his cool façade. Ganondorf growled, flexing his hands into fists. "Very well. You will succumb to me, though."

I snorted, shaking my head. "I doubt that."

He lifted his chin and gestured with one hand. The knight behind me grabbed me by my arms and half-dragged me back to my room, my prison.


	20. Chapter 20

I could not help but wonder, as I sat on my old bed and stared at the bolted doors, how Ganondorf would force me to comply. I had become accustomed to eating very little while on the run, so starving me might not be as effective as he had hoped. I sighed, feeling my hip bones, which had sharpened and become more prominent with my hunger. Worry clouded my thoughts; had Link been killed? Perhaps that was how Ganondorf would crowd me into compliance; keeping me locked away from contact with anyone who could tell me what had happened to my champion. I sighed and pulled back the bed covers, climbing between the cool and familiar sheets. Ganondorf could not torture me if my mind was not awake to his barbs. And I had to shamefully admit to myself that I missed having a bed. But I missed having a warm body next to my own more. If I had known, I would have told him sooner. I sighed in despair, hugging a pillow to my chest, and finally let myself sink into a worried sleep.

I woke up at the soft click of a door latching shut. I sat up straight, looking around with narrowed eyes. The only difference was a flat table, upon which was a tray of breakfast foods; a sad lump of oatmeal, a chipped cup of coffee, and some tarnished utensils. I picked at the food at first. The oatmeal was surprisingly sweet, with some sort of secret spicyness to it, and the coffee was bitter and hot. Alas, there was no sugar to sweeten that. I ate and drank all the same, though my stomach didn't permit much of the food. I waited after I'd finished, wondering when I would feel the first ill effects of the poison he'd surely put in my food. Nothing, except for a slight tingle across my chest. I licked my lips, studying the dishes, as if they would reveal their secret to me. My suspicion slunk away to a corner of my mind. I would mull it over later. The door unlatched and opened an hour or so after I finished eating, picking up the tray in his armored hands. I watched him with a glare; he glanced at me for a few minutes, but did not speak, his eye shield lowered. They might not even be humans inside their tin; just husks, ghosts of people cursed to do Ganondorf's bidding.

I sat up and wrapped my arms around myself, wondering if I would go mad from boredom before the false king had a chance to break my will. I sat there for a few hours more, from what I could judge, looking around my old room with a sigh, trying to place where items would've been. A bookcase in the corner, a desk in the opposite, with a chair, and a large mirror, a wardrobe on that wall… I jumped out of bed and looked at the hardwood floor. Battered as it was, it was still sure under my feet. I paced carefully, counting the boards, rapping each one with my big toe until I heard a soft, hollow noise. I kneeled and pried up the board, ripping part of a nail off. Inside was my old diary, along with an ancient pen and inkwell that I'd inherited from my grandmother. I laughed with a crazed sort of joy; pulling the dusty book out. The ink was still good, and I tested the pen against a fresh, blank page. Hurriedly, I began to scribble a living will.

I jerked upright from where I'd been brooding on the bed when the door opened again. I finished my will, and tucked my diary away in the floorboards a few hours ago, thankfully. A knight was directing a tailor inside. The man looked terrified of everything, including his own shadow. He had a fresh wound atop of his skull, with some blood still leaking from it. I stood and stepped back, watching him with guarded eyes. "Forgive me, your majesty. He has asked me to take your measurements for… a dress." He didn't need to use names; I knew exactly who would ask. "If it will spare you, sir, I willingly volunteer." The tailor had tears in his eyes as he kissed my left hand, whispering over and over, "Thank you, your majesty, thank you." I held my chin high and retained a sense of dignity as he jotted little numbers on a pad, measuring my hips, my bust, my arms, height, everything. The tailor kissed my hands again on his way out the door, and I felt tears in my eyes for him. If he survived this, I would appoint him to my court.

Hours passed, and I grew bored. A knight brought me food and gestured for me to eat. I studied him distrustfully, but ate half of the food. Again, I noticed little but a faint heat in flavor. Boredom made my head throb, and I glared at the ceiling, thinking again of my champion, my beloved. A flush raised in my face as I thought of how tenderly he handled my body. It made me smile, to know that for a brief time, I was the one in control of him. For a few hours, I was the wolfcharmer. I drew a deep breath with a shudder, closing my eyes and stretching out on the bed. With a jiggle of the handle, though, I quickly sat up, my ardour cooling. A knight stepped in, presumably to take away my dinner tray. He picked it up and stopped, looking at me. For a moment, I could feel a muffled silence of being hunted. I tensed and glowered at the knight. "Tell your lord and master that I shall die from boredom if I am not permitted books of some sort, or something to pass the time in this miserable room." The guard did not reply, and left again. I huffed and waited until he had locked the doors, giving them a gentle tug to test. Latched tight. Seemed like it was one of the few things Ganondorf had sought to improve.


	21. Chapter 21

To my surprise, within the hour, two more knights came in. One held in his arms several dozen books. Most were damaged by fire or age, but a few were legible in their entirety. They were random copies from my father's library, but I was happy to have them. Curiously mixed in with the tiresome accounts of war casualties and ancient law were lurid leather-bound womens' novels, with titles like "A Queen for a Day, a Woman for a Knight" and "The Rogue's Prisoner". I wondered if they'd been salvaged from the maids' quarters, and why. The knights left immediately after, and I spent my time reading the old ledgers, trying to decipher my father's cramped writing.

I woke with a start, looking around the room suspiciously. Its dingy wooden walls were so familiar as to be stifling. I'd fallen asleep with my cheek tucked into an ancient and boring account of petty war crimes commited by Hylian soldiers during some three hundred year old battle. I realized what I woke up to- someone had been leaving my room. They left behind a beautiful pale blue gown, with a low-cut bodice, and a note on folded white paper that simply read,

"Lord and Master Ganondorf politely requests your company for the breaking of our fast."

I doubted the tailor could have made the dress in a night, but I did not recognize it from my old wardrobe, and it fit well, if not a little loose. There was also a chipped basin of cool water, a wash rag, and a carefully polished circlet of gold. I warily wiped my face clean, particularly the words that had smudged onto my sleeping cheek. The last thing Ganondorf needed to see was an embarrassing recount of Gismuth the Lion-haired accidentally gashing his own thigh with his own sword emblazed across my cheek.

I finally dared to try the door. It was unlocked. But as soon as I walked out, two guards accompanied me on either side. For a few minutes, I entertained the idea of snatching a sword from one and seeing how far I could get, hacking and slashing my way through this abysmal existence. It might be a nice way to go on my wedding day. I paused on my way down the ruined stairs. I would never have a proper wedding day if I did not survive this. And Link had sworn to be with me, had he not? I gritted my teeth and continued on, past the guards that had stopped when I had. I would survive this.

I stormed into the dining hall with my arms at my sides, slamming the doors open with as much force as I could muster. Ganondorf looked up coolly from where he'd been waiting, standing at attention. "Good morning, princess." A knight pulled my seat out, and I sat down with a strained grimace of a smile. "Good morning, Ganondorf." He did not seem to mind my informality, but why would I mind his? The knights served us covered dishes, under which was a pitiful egg done over easy, with two half-slices of toast, a small pot of jam, and a thin rasher of ham that looked slightly green. I stared at the food, then looked slowly up at Ganondorf. He cleared his throat, looking… uncomfortable. I smiled to myself, knowing I could press this to my advantage. "Food seems to be scarce in the great kingdom," I remarked casually. Even though I was ravenous, I took my time, cutting the ham into the smallest pieces I could manage, and then going for the toast and jam. Ganondorf cleared his throat. "You see, your highness—this is why I request an allegiance between us. I am struggling to rule this place on my own. I desire your help, Zelda." I chewed absently on a piece of toast, taking my time. "And why would I be so eager to help you?" Ganondorf smiled. "Because it is in your best interest of keeping your life." I set my food down. "You are going to kill me anyway." Ganondorf shrugged. "I can be persuaded into sweetness with the right influence, your highness." I took a bite of the ham. It was slightly sour on my tongue. I could only imagine what sort of persuasion Ganondorf was looking for.

When breakfast was finished and I stood up, Ganondorf gestured to the knights. "Zelda, if you will be quite complacent, I will allow you to have run of the castle."

"Why?" I studied him with a frown. Ganondorf stood, rubbing his hands together. "It has been told to me that you are quite bored of your little room, and I hoped that perhaps a look around your old home would comfort you some. You do not have to be afraid of me, Zelda. I am happy to work with you, to recreate Hyrule." I walked away from him, the guards following me as I wandered through the gloomy halls of the castle. Ganondorf was not far behind them. "We can rebuild this castle after the wedding, better than it was."

I headed to my father's old room, what had been my room for only a short while, pushing the doors open. It was in rather poor condition, except for the bed, which was new, and larger than the one that had been in the room before. Ganondorf stepped up behind me and chuckled against my ear. "You are quite forward, aren't you?" I stared at the bed, feeling a warmth of sexual desire spread through my body, a strange smell on the air. "So, this is where you sleep. You don't deserve this room." I shoved my way past him, not daring to look up in his face. I held my jaw tight and tense as I briskly walked back into the main hall of the castle. Ganondorf caught up easily, standing next to me. I stopped and glared up at him. "Where is Link?" Ganondorf raised his eyebrows, and chuckled. "I do not know. Did we catch him?" Ganondorf turned around and looked at the two knights standing there. One of the knights nodded. "Was he killed?" Ganondorf asked next. I held my breath, staring. The other knight reluctantly nodded.

I staggered, nearly falling onto the floor. He'd died. That was why Link had not come back for me; why he was not with me now, to save me. I shuddered and put my hands to my face, feeling tears springing at my eyes. "No, please tell me it isn't true," I whimpered, staring at the guard. He only stared at me. I fell onto my knees and screamed, covering my ears with my hands. I screamed my loss until my voice started to crack and my throat turned sore. I could not move, I could not think. I could only feel the knife of my pain digging deeper into my gut. Ganondorf reached down and pulled me to my feet, and with one hand I slapped him across the face, hooking my fingers so that my nails would dig into the skin and leave scratches. Ganondorf swore and pushed me away from him. "You only have yourself to blame for his death! If you had given over to me the first time, when I asked, this never would have happened!" I charged back towards him and continued to slap Ganondorf's face, tears streaming down my cheeks. With a roar of frustration, he grabbed me by the arms and spun me around, grabbing both wrists behind my back. I wriggled and fought against him, but he was dragging me back towards his bedroom. "Let me go!" I screamed in my raspy voice.

Ganondorf ignored me, kicking his bedroom doors open and throwing me on the bed. I nearly rolled off, climbing down and jumping to my feet and pinning myself against the far corner. Ganondorf stormed after me, his eyes ablaze with an unmatched fury. He grabbed me again, by the hair this time, and threw me at the bed again. I hit something hard, and saw stars in my eyes, gasping for air. Ganondorf muttered a curse of frustration, and scooped me up with his hands, sitting me up on the bed and stroking my cheek. I recoiled from his touch. "Don't do that, Zelda. Be obedient to me, and I will do anything for you." I stared at him in bewilderment. "I will not yield to you," I replied, tears still streaming down my face. Ganondorf smiled sadly at me. "You will have no choice."


	22. Chapter 22

I sat awake in Ganondorf's room most of the night, even after he left to conduct some business, or brood in the main hall in that hideous thing he called a throne. When I did fall asleep and woke up again, I was still in his room, sleeping atop of the covers. Ganondorf was nowhere to be found. I climbed off the bed and was surprised to find that the doors were unlocked. The guards looked at me, and one followed me as I went back to my room. I could hardly walk. As we headed through the main hall, I slowed down, looking towards the great doors of the castle. The desire to escape, to run, made my heart pound. I wouldn't even care if the guards caught me and killed me where I stood, leaving my blood to soak into the ground. The guard behind me nudged me onward, and I gritted my teeth. No. Link would want me to stay on and save the castle, to save our home. And he would be back, we always returned to the same song and dance as before.

I spent another week and a half in this way. Curled in my room on my bed, half-heartedly reading books the guards brought to me. To my dismay, it seemed that less and less of my father's ledgers had survived any damage, and the poorly-disguised smut my maids had hidden were indestructible. I entertained myself by reading them, mocking the innacuracies of court life in my head, sometimes laughing outright at a scene of romance. The more I read of them, the more I could not help but imagine Link in place of "Sir Gladwick the Suave" or "Rogue Privateer Captain Sebastien". The thoughts of us, together in love-making again, were harder and harder to cast from my mind. Shamefully, I had to clumsily paw at my own body to make the unsought dreams leave. But they would be back within an hour, stronger than ever.

When I could not cast them out, I paced the building, with a robe wrapped securely over a nightgown. Both items a guard had brought with my evening meal. Ganondorf had not requested my presence again after I clawed his face. I was glad; I would have no reason to see him. A guard was still trailing me, and I wandered to an open porch, standing in the moonlight and staring at the destruction. The guard stood behind me respectfully. I glanced at him and looked back to the ruined land. "So, you are a traitor to the crown." The guard did not respond. "I do hope for your sake that you were blackmailed into your position, or that you are a captured soul who had no choice in the matter. When I retake the castle, and I will, I'm afraid those found to have knowingly betrayed me will be killed. What do you think of that?" I glanced back at him with a frown. The guard did not respond. I sighed in irritation and whipped back inside, my babysitter following dutifully. I headed back to my room and slammed the door, locking it shut from my side and climbing onto the bed. Hang them all, that was exactly what I would do when I retook my crown. I climbed under the covers, letting my rage and frustration turn into tears again.

The next morning, I was woken by a guard gently shaking my shoulder. I sat up and stared at the men and few women in my room. The latter looked exhausted and pale, and they stared at me with shadowy eyes. The men were mostly guards, except for the little old tailor, who held a parcel in his arms. "Today is to be your wedding day, your majesty," he muttered in a sad voice. I noticed that the women were dressed alike—my bridesmaids, apparently. I stood up out of bed slowly, feeling dizzy and nauseous. The women stepped forward and pulled my nightgown and robe away. One wrapped my chest in a corset, lacing it up tight until I could hardly breathe. The others began to comb and style my hair, muttering to each other about its state of disorder. I closed my eyes and endured the pain, though I did have to look at my wedding dress. It was red, with a square neck and sleeves that ended at the elbow, the skirt billowing out at the hips. I was rather impressed with it, to be honest. "I trust this is a very traditional Gerudo style dress?" I asked the tailor softly. He nodded. "Will it be a Gerudo style wedding, as well?"

"We believe so, your majesty," muttered one of my bridesmaids. They styled my hair up into a high style, pinning it with a massive gold and red brooch. They wrapped a golden, sheer material around my shoulders and waist, letting the ends trail onto the ground alongside my dress. When I was dressed, the guards brought in a heavy, full-length mirror. I stared at my reflection, and started to cry.

The bridesmaids had to more or less bully me to the main hall, where the altar was set up. Guards had to hold me hostage so that I would not run off. Ganondorf stood at the altar already, his armor polished and clean. I was forced to walk the altar; several other guards and a few Gerudo women stood in attendance. They watched me with hateful, jealous eyes. I would gladly give up my stance to them. A priest stood in attendance, wielding a book and talking hurriedly, skipping most of a formal sermon at Ganondorf's insistence, no doubt. He waved his hand towards us, finally stepping aside and gesturing to three candles. We each lit a match, myself doing so with trembling hands, before we lit our own separate candles and used them to light the center one. After that, we stood back in front of the priest, and Ganondorf reached for my hands with a frown. I broke down, shuddering and sobbing noisily. He grabbed my hands and pulled me up, his grip like iron. The priest held out the rings. Ganondorf put mine on my thumbs, and had to help me put his on, guards standing nearby with their hands on their swords, waiting for me to make a false move. The rings were heavy and gold, studded with diamonds and rubies. "You may kis-"

"No!" I insisted, but Ganondorf grabbed me by the shoulders, pulling me close. "Play along, you riotous wench, and it will be all the easier for you." I shuddered as he kissed me, his lips warm and dry. I turned my head away as soon as possible, looking out at the pathetic audience that was already disbanding. And that was it. We were married.

We sat in the dining hall together at the table. Ganondorf sat at the head, and I sat to his right. Again, we were brought covered dishes, with small portions of rice and vegetables in a spicy sauce, flecked with red flakes. It wasn't terrible food, but I picked at it nonetheless, watching Ganondorf as we ate. No one else joined us. A rather miserable wedding, from my perspective, but the last thing I desired was a crowd of people congratulating me. Weddings were supposed to be the unity of two people that loved and cared for each other. Sometimes, yes, they were for political gain, but only if the betrothed had a respect and affection of their own. I couldn't eat most of my dinner. I'd been feeling nauseous all day, and the smell of the food made my nose itch. "Zelda, eat," Ganondorf commanded. I closed my eyes. "I'm not much hungry."

"You need to get your strength up," he replied, his tone hardening around the edges. "For what?" I retorted, piercing him with a stare. Ganondorf lowered his head and stared back. We remained locked like that for a few moments, until finally I broke and stabbed a vegetable with my fork, eating it savagely. Ganondorf continued to study me a moment longer before he ate.

At the end of our silent and miserable meal, Ganondorf and I stood at the same time. I barely noticed the spicy taste of my food now. "Shall we?" Ganondorf asked softly. I looked at him in confusion. "Oh, now I married you like our agreement, but nowhere did I agree to letting you be near me!" Ganondorf gritted his teeth, looking savage and furious. "Do not test me, girl!" He started walking towards me, and I ran. I fled for the doors, running as fast as the stupid dress and shoes would let me. His guards were ready, and they caught me before I even got out of the dining hall, one wrapping his metallic arms around me. I kicked and squirmed, able to barely reach the pommel of his sword with the tips of my fingers. If only I could get it free! Ganondorf walked up and sighed, touching my cheek with his fingers. "Zelda, you swore to be my wife, and perform all wifely duties. You're bound by our marriage agreement!" I lashed out with my legs, kicking furiously. Ganondorf merely stepped back.

"You're a bastard!" I screamed. "A bastard and an evil madman!" Ganondorf seemed unmoved by my insults. The guard shifted his grip, and I was able to wrap my hand around the sword handle, tugging on it. It came free in my hands, and I whipped the point around, pressing the tip to my throat. "I swore I would do it! I told you and you know I did!" I yelled. Ganondorf stopped, raising his hands. "Zelda, do not do something you would regret."

"I'm trying to keep that from happening!" I shouted back, aiming the point. Unfortunately, the weight of the blade rested on the guard's arm. He shifted it, and the sharp point raked a thin scratch from the side of my neck up to my cheek, just under my eye. Ganondorf lunged forward and pulled the sword away, and in a fluid movement, the guard let me go with one arm, pushing me down onto my knees and holding me there by painfully twisting one of my arms. Ganondorf stood directly before me, and I looked up at him in horror. "Swear to give yourself to me."

"No."

"SWEAR IT!" His voice boomed.

"NO!" I shouted back as loud as I could, a thin scrawl of blood running from my cut along my neck. He kicked me in the gut, and I gasped in pain. He waited a few minutes, looking at me. "No matter what you say or do, I will have my way! It can either be easy, or it can be VERY. PAINFUL." He feinted another kick, and I flinched. "Swear. It," he growled in his throat. I trembled. I felt sick, ready to vomit. My skin pulsed with pain where I'd been cut, and worse of all, my unbidden desire had returned fivefold, though it felt alien and detached. "Swear it," he snarled, one last time.


	23. Chapter 23

**AN: THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER CONTAINS SEXUALLY EXPLICIT MATERIAL, AS WELL AS TRIGGERS FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT. BY READING THIS CHAPTER, YOU CONFIRM THAT YOU ARE OF AGE IN YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE TO READ MATERIAL OF THIS NATURE.**

I would not swear it. I would not, could not do that. But Ganondorf knew I was beaten, and he had the guard half-drag me to the bedroom. And I was yielding, because I knew it could hurt so much worse. It hurt bad enough with Link inside of me, and I'd been more than willing. The guard pushed me into the room with Ganondorf right there, and he locked the door. I climbed onto the bed, shuddering as I looked at its sheets. Ganondorf cleared his throat, and it struck me as hilarious that he looked _nervous_. "Take off your clothes," he growled, unhooking his armor and starting to remove it piece by piece. Whatever I'd found funny, I no longer did. I unraveled the gold sash and threw it to one side on the floor, and I struggled with the buttons that ran up the back of the dress. Ganondorf was down to his loose black pants now. His chest was muscular, with a dusting of curly dark hair. I looked away, an unwarranted heat creeping between my thighs. My breasts ached from being trapped inside a corset for too long. I curled up on the bed, my back towards Ganondorf. He climbed onto the bed and unbuttoned my dress, taking his time and pushing it off my shoulders, down off my chest. I shivered, a chill raising my skin into goosepimples. Ganondorf untied my stays, reaching around to the front to unhook the corset.

"I-I'll do it," I stuttered, pushing his hands away and quickly unhooking the material. I flung the corset to the floor and wrapped my arms protectively around my chest, trembling even as Ganondorf reached around, cupping the undersides of my breasts and kissing my neck and shoulder, his fingers creeping their way up under my arms. I tried to pin them tighter against my body, protecting myself from him, but he growled in his throat and pried at my arms until I loosened them with a choked sob. His hands squeezed my breasts painfully, and in a fluid motion he pushed me down on my back, leaning over to kiss my mouth. I turned my head away, and he bared his teeth, putting a hand at my throat and squeezing until I coughed and whimpered, turning my face back towards his. He kissed me forcefully, pushing his tongue into my mouth and sucking at my lips. I responded as little possible, holding still and wishing that I could sink into the bed to never be seen again.

His rough hands pulled the rest of my dress away, and then my drawers, ripping them down ferociously. "Don't," I croaked painfully, but he didn't listen, grabbing my hands by the wrists and pinning them up on the pillows. I was nude and vulnerable, and my cursed sex was impatient in its longing. That was the worst part of the ordeal; that in a sick way, I desired him to do this. I could only think of Link—how could he ever want me after this? Ganondorf moved away for a moment, letting my hands go. I sat up and looked, realizing he was removing his last article of clothing. He climbed back onto the bed, stepping out of his discarded pants, and pinned my down again, his dry mouth sucking painfully at the starting point of my cut, licking lightly at the blood. I recoiled with tears in my eyes. His knees forced my legs apart, and then he was inside of me, with a sudden thrust that made my toes clench and made me cry out in pain. Ganondorf held me down, and I stared helplessly up at the ceiling, letting my tears fall. He grunted as he thrusted inside of me, so hard I could barely breathe, hitting something tender in my gut that made me flinch and gasp sharply. I cried through the entire ordeal, feeling sick again, wanting to vomit. Ganondorf groaned, squeezing my wrists so tight they bruised, shuddering as he found his release. He lowered himself on top of me, smothering my body. I could do little more but stare at the ceiling, my whole self feeling numb.

Ganondorf pulled free and rolled onto his back, gasping for air and staring upwards. After several minutes, he sat up, getting a robe and throwing it at me. "I will see you in the morning for breakfast, and we will commence again tomorrow night. You're dismissed." I stared at him with wild eyes. He growled and punched the wall, horrible in his nakedness and anger. "Get OUT!" he roared. My hands were so numb, I couldn't manage to properly pull on the robe. A guard had to do it for me, his hands tender. The same guard walked me back to my room, where I sank onto the bed, and cried bitterly the entire night.


	24. Chapter 24

**AN: THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER CONTAINS SEXUALLY EXPLICIT MATERIAL, AS WELL AS TRIGGERS FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT. BY READING THIS CHAPTER, YOU CONFIRM THAT YOU ARE OF AGE IN YOUR COUNTRY OF RESIDENCE TO READ MATERIAL OF THIS NATURE.**

I succumbed to him. It went on for a week in the same pattern; we would eat each meal together, and at dinner, we would both walk to his room, where he would force me to undress and violate me however he pleased before sending me to my room. I quit sleeping or reading. I couldn't even taste the food I was given. When we laid together, I stared at the ceiling, detaching from the experience entirely, trying to lose myself in sweet fantasies to preserve my sanity. But when Ganondorf would catch me doing this, he would swear and painfully pinch my breasts, or bite them, or slap me around the face. The same guard- at least, I suspected it was the same- would help me tie my robe and walk me to my rooms, where I would sit up in bed all night and cry bitter tears. He did not comfort me. I vomited in the mornings and occasionally later in the day, stumbled into things. My breasts felt sore all the time, and the smell of certain foods would set me on edge.

After a week of abuse, Ganondorf corralled a doctor somewhere, who had me lay down and examined me. "Congratulations, my lady. You're pregnant." I stared in shock. "You can tell so soon?" I asked in surprise. The doctor shrugged. "Well, yes, you're… ah…" he looked at Ganondorf, who glowered, "… far enough along by a few days." He prescribed remedies for the vomiting and the headaches. Ganondorf only looked at me, his expression unreadable.

Later that day, Ganondorf had new clothes sent to me. He procured a few rich foods for dinner, things I once might've enjoyed; stewed rabbit, roasted pheasant, and ripe fruits sent for from other countries, expressed here on horseback. I could barely touch the pheasant, and the sweet spicy taste of the rabbit only reminded me of the nights Link and I spent together. I ate the fruit, appreciating the taste, but unable to enjoy it. Ganondorf, to his credit, was struggling to be patient. But I saw the way his fury left him through a clenched fist to break a mug when I pushed my meat around on the plate. He sought me again that night, taking me from my rooms and laying me in his bed. "The mother of my child should have the honor of sharing my bed," he muttered darkly. I laughed bitterly, shaking my head. "Only now have I elevated from being your whore to your wife," I snapped sarcastically. Ganondorf slapped me across the face, and I closed my mouth tight, turning away. "Zelda, I had to do that," he mumbled, his way of apologizing. Ganondorf wrapped his arms around me, pinning me against his chest, stroking my hair and reaching into my nightgown to tweak one nipple until I flinched. My pain was still very much his pleasure, and he showed it by reaching between my legs to stroke at my womanhood. I closed my eyes, too tired and sick to cry.

I was still awake when Ganondorf dropped off to sleep, his grip slackening on my body. I slipped out of his arms, stumbling around the room as quietly as possible. There, on the desk, was a sharp pen knife with a pointed tip. I picked it up and slipped it into my robe's pocket, creeping out of the room. One guard stood at attention, and he followed me as I headed to the open balcony again. I wanted to die somewhere beautiful, and outside, where I was free, seemed the best place. I picked the pen knife from my pocket and held it to my wrist, testing it against the skin. A bead of blood appeared, bright red against my pale complexion. With a little sob of excitement, I brought the knife down carefully, starting to scratch along my arm. The guard clattered up and grabbed my wrist forcefully, shaking his head. "Piss off, you traitorous dog. I'll see that you burn alive for-My tirade was silenced when he shoved a scroll in my face. "What sort of trickery is this, you foul waste?" I growled. The guard gestured, and I used the pen knife to break the wax seal, unrolling the paper. To my shock, it was a message from the elite guard we encountered in Kakariko.

Your Majesty Zelda,

I hope to the Goddesses this letter finds you alive at the very least. Please have faith—Master Link has prepared an army to storm the castle. The guard that has handed you this note is a spy for us. I can never apologize enough for your betrayal at Kakariko. It was the cowardly farmer that betrayed his own son. We had to flee not long after Ganondorf raided the town, though all he found of you were your hoopskirts. Our army shall attack when the moon is new again, providing adequate cover. Please hold onto your faith for us, your majesty. We are coming to rescue you.

Forever in your allegiance,

Sir Garenth

Ganondorf,

If this notice has found you, please disregard. Thanks!

I choked back laughter and tears. They were coming on the next new moon. I looked up- it was in waning, a fat crescent in the sky. They would be here in less than a week. I turned and looked at the guard, who carefully removed his helmet to reveal an older man with graying blond hair and dark eyes. "Why didn't you tell me?" I whispered. The guard shook his head. "I was not allowed to until now." I stood and hugged him tight, crying into his chest. The man held me, stroking my tangled hair. "Don't cry any more, your majesty." I wiped my eyes dry, sniffling. "Sir, I have a predicament. I am pregnant with Ganondorf's child." He nodded. "Can you procure… something to fix the problem?" The guard licked his lips. "Ordinarily, I'd not agree with the purging of a child. But this is a special case. I'll see what I can do." I sobbed tears of gratitude. Funny how only the kind of sorrow and despair had run out. But something made me pause and reread the letter. "But—they said Link was dead!" I cried stupidly. The man chuckled. "Who told Ganondorf he was dead? T'was me, your majesty."

"So he's alive?"

"He's the one tha' came up with the idea of a disguised knight."

Link was alive! My heart swelled. I sank to my knees and laughed, feeling lighter and happier than I had in a fortnight. When the moon started to sink, my guard clapped his helmet back on and helped me to stand, taking me back inside. He found me some bandaging for my wrist, even though it had stopped bleeding. I went into my room, and he dutifully latched the door. I tucked the scroll in the hidden floorboard with my diary.


	25. Chapter 25

A few days later, I was again walking from Ganondorf's room. My guard was not far behind. We met on the open balcony, and he presented me with a paper-wrapped package of herbs. "Steep this like a tea, and drink it with your breakfast and lunch. By the next day, you should notice an effect." I thanked him in a hoarse whisper, tucking the herbs into the top of my nightgown. I waited until the sun rose in my room, looking up in surprise when Ganondorf himself came into my room. He seemed surprised to see me awake. "Good morning, Zelda."

I smiled pleasantly, the herbs tucked into my pillow. "Good morning." He seemed lost, looking around hesitantly. "Ah… you have not been staying in our bed at night. Why?"

I shrugged. "It's not really my bed."

He frowned and sat down next to me, stroking my cheek. "Do not act so cold. You're my queen."

I looked away. He growled with frustration. "Look—what would you like for breakfast? Would you like to have it in bed? I'll bring it to you myself." I studied him suspiciously, but having breakfast in private would give me the perfect chance to steep the herbs. "Simple food, please. Tea with lemon and toast, and an egg, over easy?" I watched him.

Ganondorf nodded. "I will bring it to you immediately." He jerked towards me as he rose, brushing his lips on my forehead.

I waited with trembling hands for an hour until the food was brought to me. The egg was stunted, peppered with some red spice, and the toast was a slice cut in half to look bigger than it was. A chipped ceramic pot of hot water and a cup on a saucer, with a slightly moldy lemon wedge and barely a spoonful of dried herbs rattled gently when the tray was set down. Ganondorf looked embarrassed, but I smiled sweetly. "Thank you, husband." I almost shuddered to say it out loud. He looked much relieved, however, and left the room. I fetched the herbs forth immediately, stuffing them into a rusty loose tea ball hooked to the inside of the pot lid. They bristled out of the perforations. I nibbled at the toast, not really tasting it or the egg as I waited a few minutes for the leaves to soak. When I felt they were potent enough, I poured a cup. The liquid tasted bitter and foul, and I retched after the first few sips. But it was necessary. I drank the entire thing, and poured another cup. Three cups total. My stomach growled uneasily, and I carefully fished the herbs out of the strainer, tucking them back into their thick paper wrapping.

I stayed curled up in bed for the day until Ganondorf summoned me to lunch, where I again requested tea. "Just a craving," I replied, smiling wanly at Ganondorf when he looked at me in surprise. He nodded reluctantly. "The doctor said there would be some… strange cravings."

I ate little; my stomach was lurching angrily inside of me. I managed to huddle the tea ball into my lap and stuff it full of the medicinal plants while Ganondorf was glowering at his pathetic lunch- a hunk of crusty, stale bread, some cheese, and cold slivers of ham. I drank the tea greedily, wondering if I dare try to prepare more at dinner, to be sure of their effect. It was harder still to squirrel away the leaves at the end of the meal, wrapping them again in the now-stained paper and hiding them in my pocket. Ganondorf tried to engage me in a walk of the castle grounds, but I refused and pleaded sick, putting one hand to my stomach. "I have not been reacting well to my… condition," I said softly. "It is probably best if I rest for now." Ganondorf's face flickered with a brief anger, but he nodded all the same. "Very well." I forced myself to move in close and kiss his cheek very lightly, a hand on his shoulder. Ganondorf grimaced in a poor smile. I turned and nearly ran back to my room to hide.

I had dinner in my room, and again managed to steep the leaves. This last dose was the weakest, that I was aware of. But I drank it anyway, wrapping the leaves carefully and hiding them in the floorboards to dispose of later. I left my room, trailed by a guard again, and I peered out a window. The moon was barely a crescent in the sky. Tomorrow night, they would come.

My sleep was uneasy. I was having a recurring nightmare of a massive battle, the one supposedly to take place tomorrow night. Soldiers were screaming and dying, my clothes were spattered in blood, and overhead I could hear Ganondorf's roaring laughter. My stomach was swollen with pregnancy, and I screamed in pain as the child inside clawed at my insides, eager to be free. I watched in horror as it ripped its way from my stomach, a deformed thing that was half man and half demon. I bled out with screams of horror as the thing stared at me, its lips curled in a sneer. "Mother," it whispered in a gravelly voice, before lunging for my throat.

I kept screaming as I woke up. Some monster had grabbed hold of my gut, and was wringing the blood from it. My bedclothes were sticky and wet under my legs, and I sat straight up in bed. Guards bashed through the doors, one of them our spy. Ganondorf stormed through, his face in a panic, hair flying crazily around his head. "What's happening?!" he shouted.

"Doctor!" I screamed in reply, clutching my stomach and shuddering. Ganondorf ran, and I groaned in agony, reluctantly lifting my bed covers and staring in horror at the mess of blackish-red blood that met me. My guard stood impassively by my side; if he reacted in too human of a way to my distress, his cover would be blown. Another cramp, and more tissue issued forth from my body. By the time Ganondorf came back with a doctor, the ordeal was mostly over, and I was lying on the bed in a sweaty daze of exhaustion. The doctor took my pulse, and lifted the bed covers, gasping when he saw the horror. "How bad is it?!" Ganondorf shouted.

The doctor shook his head. "It's too late." I stared at Ganondorf. He looked back. His face contorted with fury, a smoldering fire deep in his dark eyes.

"What did you do?" he whispered. I shuddered and tried to look pathetic and helpless.

"Nothing," I whimpered.

"DO NOT! Do NOT! LIE TO ME!" His teeth were sharp fangs in his mouth, and I curled up on my side, feeling sick. The doctor patted my hair, trying to reassure me. "Guards, please; he's clearly hysterical," he ordered, gesturing to Ganondorf's foaming mouth and wild eyes. The guards hesitated; they only took orders from Ganondorf. Instead, the monstrous man wheeled from the room, storming away through the castle, and the guards followed after. The door closed behind them, and the doctor pulled up a chair, sitting down and cleaning his glasses with a cloth. "How did you do it?" he asked quietly. I studied the doctor, wondering if I could trust him. He put a hand on mine, and the human warmth I got from him reassured me. I shuddered and took a deep breath to control myself. "Herbs, steeped like a tea."

"Where are they?"

"Hidden in a floorboard."

I directed him to it, unable to move from the pain. He unwrapped the package, poking through the brown, soggy mess, muttering. "Whoever got you this recipe knows what they are doing. You will feel ill for the next few days though, I shouldn't wonder. And I would try to avoid… strenuous activity." We sat in silence for several minutes.

"Doctor."

"Yes?"

"How were you able to tell that I was already pregnant in barely a week?"

The doctor was silent, looking down at his hands. "Your majesty, you were nearly three weeks along. The child could not have been Ganondorf's, as you've been here less than that, which is why I lied." I felt my stomach drop, and my skin went cold and clammy. The doctor looked up again. "I assume you know whose it was." I couldn't move or think, my mind reeling in horror. "Your majesty, he would have made it his child, no matter who the rightful father. He had probably already begun polluting its mind through the food you ate."

I rubbed my face with my hands. "Should I tell him?"

"No!" the doctor replied in alarm. "Do you want him to kill you?"

"I meant the rightful father," I replied.

"Oh." The doctor thought it over. "Only if you feel he needs to know."

Shivers raked my body, and I felt a migraine starting in my head. The doctor stayed for several more minutes, until finally, he slowly stood up, squeezing my shoulder, and left the room in silence.


	26. Chapter 26

Ganondorf had me moved from my room to his, as my bed was a nightmare of blood. All of my things came with me, except for what was hidden in the floorboards. He had a hot bath prepared in a massive, claw-footed tub. I stripped naked when I was alone in the room and sank into the water, watching it turn pink as I scrubbed away the blood. Not much longer; mere hours were all that stood between myself and freedom. It made my palms itch with excitement.

I soaked in the tub for as long as I dared, letting my eyes close and drifting aimlessly. My stomach ached, and I was still vomiting at the least bad smell as my body adjusted. Ganondorf was hardly able to look at me, and I suspected he was determined to find out what I'd done to myself, even though the doctor had tried to explain to him that "sometimes these things happen". His uncharacteristic attempt at sweetness had left with the loss. I was served food in bed, and I picked at it, eating little. But worst of all, I was _bored _again, hopelessly so. The boredom was worse, because I was waiting impatiently for night to fall, and a signal to come. I forced myself out of bed, wrapped in a nightgown and my trusty robe, and I paced the castle aimlessly, feeling like a ghost of my former self.

I headed one last time to the open balcony, looking up at the darkening sky. The first few stars were appearing in the sky. The lone howl of a wolf broke the dead silence of the castle, and I stopped where I was.

Was it time?

I waited, gripping part of the ruined balcony railing and biting my lower lip. Another wolf howl, closer this time, and then a third, raising the hairs on my arms. A guard stepped out onto the balcony behind me. "Ganondorf requests that you come inside. Something is going on." I followed him in reluctantly, the guard locking and latching the doors. Ganondorf looked at me suspiciously, and I had to bite the inside of my cheeks to keep from smiling. He walked towards me briskly, grabbing me by the arm and half-dragging me to his room. "Keep her safe," he ordered the guards that followed us. "Guard this door. Let no one but myself through." The guards nodded, and I stared as the doors slammed closed.

"No!" I cried out loud, running to the doors and tugging on the latched handles. "Damn." However, Ganondorf had a window in his room. I ran and pulled on it, but it was latched tight. "Bloody hell!" I cursed loudly. No luck. Frantically, I explored the room, trying to find a weapon or a key. I did manage to find a sharp dagger hidden between the mattress and box spring, and I cut a hole into my nightgown for it to rest in, with the handle pressed against my side. Good. I pulled it out again and pushed against the wooden frame of the window. When it refused to give, I took the dagger by the handle and, using my nightgown to cover my hand to protect it, I carefully broke away the panes of glass.

When that was done, I tested the wooden frame that bisected the window into four panes of glass, pushing on it with my weight. It did not budge much, and I started chopping at the wood with the dagger. Outside, I could hear horses thundering around and neighing in bewilderment, their riders shouting instructions. The knights were onto the coming army. In the distance, again and again, I heard wolf howls. I looked up, where a hawk circled over my tower. It screamed, and the sound was beautiful. An owl flew to the broken window not long after, a note tied to its ankle. It looked rather irritated at the conception that it was a messenger bird. I took the note, careful of its massive talons, and unrolled it.

Zelda,

Stay where you are! We will distract the knights with a diversion before we ambush. Everyone is here to fight for you.

I folded the note in half and tucked it into my robe pocket. It gave me hope, as the wolf howls got closer to the castle. I closed my eyes, wishing for a sign, to know how close they were. An explosion from the front of the castle made it shudder. I opened my eyes wide and gasped. They were here!

I tried the door to the bedroom, noting with anger that it was indeed still locked tight. "Let me out!" I shouted, pounding on the tough wood with my fists. I looked around, noting the hinges of the door, and grabbing the desk chair to make myself taller, I pulled them out, and then grabbed the doors by their handles to pull them free. The doors creaked open and swung uneasily on their narrow balance, and I had to run out of the way as they slammed to the ground. The guards turned and looked at me in surprise, but I was already barreling my way through the open door way and running to the main hall of the castle. The guards were chasing me, but I didn't care. Ganondorf stood near his throne, holding a sword with a black pommel. He glanced at me and shouted in anger as I ran past, heading for the doors. There was no one else blocking the entrance, and I ran for it, even with the stitch in my side and three men chasing me.

I shoved open the doors with my shoulder and both hands, stumbling out into the world. Wolves howled and fought viciously with Ganondorf's hounds. Riders on horseback battled with the few knights that still had their steeds, and they were greatly outnumbered. I held my little dagger close and waded into the fray with my heavy nightgown, keeping a look out in case of danger. Ganondorf stayed up on the steps behind me, staring at the war that was raging. A guard ran into me, his armor clattering. He reared with surprise when he saw it was me, and before he had a chance to grab me, I ran deeper into the fight.

"Link!" I screamed, looking around. I couldn't tell where he was; even Zora were fighting as valiantly as they could, and the Gorons swung their muscular arms, knocking knights off their horses and bellowing in fury. I was shocked to see how few there were; how viciously had the Dodongos devoured their kin? The head Goron, Darunia, bellowed and punched a knight in the chest before storming on to the next opponent, and behind him, I barely caught sight of Link. "Link!" I screamed again, as loud as I could. I ran to where I'd seen him, stumbling over the ground and some of the slain. Link was still there, atop his horse and armed with a shield now, his face and clothes spattered with blood. His hair was wild around his face, and he shouted loudly, waving his sword in the air. "Bring it on, ye foolish, stupid pack o' braying hounds! Come 'ere an' get your slaughter! Meet your death by my hand!"

"Link!" I screamed again.

He turned and looked at me in surprise. "Zelda!" he shouted back, and I ran to him. He helped me climb up on the horse, and I hugged him tightly. "I missed you, I missed you so bloody much," I cried, gasping. Link kissed me quickly, hugging me tight around the waist.

"Get down!" he shouted as a knight thundered towards us. I hopped down quickly, flexing my leg in a painful way and ducking as he dueled the knight. I backed away, turning and fleeing as quickly as I could. The battle was mostly over. It hadn't lasted very long. The slain lay all over, their blood and their armor gleaming in the light of the stars. A few were of our side; a wolf here, an old knight there, even a few Zora. I looked back to the stairs of the castle, where Ganondorf still stood, waiting patiently with his sword in hand. Link rode his horse toward the stairs, watching Ganondorf patiently.

Ganondorf bared his teeth. "Can you hold your own against a man, boy?"

"I believe I can," Link replied coolly, jumping down off his horse. He whipped the Master Sword, cutting the air in one fast movement. Ganondorf laughed. "So, you're going to steal my wife, boy?" Link faltered and snorted. "You're bluffing." Ganondorf pointed at me, and I tucked my hands behind me. "Show him!" I shuddered, and held my hands out. Link walked over and took my hands with his, looking at the rings. "Zelda..."

I looked up at him, ashamed. "He forced me to marry him." Link touched the palm of my right hand, before he gently pulled the rings off my thumbs, and grinned at me. I smiled back, kissing him. "We can win this," I whispered against his mouth.

"I know," he replied quietly. I had to step away; if I didn't, I would just keep kissing him and not stop.

Link turned away and glowered at Ganondorf, throwing the wedding rings to the ground. Ganondorf narrowed his eyes, his hands resting atop the pommel of his sword and the tip balanced on the ground. The air was thick with silence, as if the world held its breath. Link raised his sword, crouching low to the ground and holding the point of his blade steady, towards the ground. He stepped slowly up the stairs, his eyes narrowed. Ganondorf stepped back, gripping the handle of his sword and twirling it until the point was in the air. He gripped the handle with both hands, raising it above his head and aiming at Link.

Link flipped the sword in a circle, making the air hum. Ganondorf chuckled raggedly, waiting.

Link charged.


	27. Chapter 27

Ganondorf swung downwards, and Link swung in an upward arc, knocking the sword away. Ganondorf growled, stepping forward. Link stepped back, ducked, and jabbed forward. His sword deflected off Ganondorf's armor, gouging into his side. Ganondorf flinched and hissed, quickly switching his blade to the other hand and swinging at Link's head with a groan. Link fell to the ground and rolled, getting up on one knee and swinging at Ganondorf's poorly protected shins. Ganondorf jumped back and flipped the sword in his hand, plunging the point of his sword downward. Link jumped back and stood back up.

They stilled again, studying each other, breathing hard. Ganondorf grinned, chuckling. "I haven't had this much fun since last week." His eyes slid over to me. Link glanced quickly at me, and then back to Ganondorf. But he looked furious. I held my breath.

Link jumped forward, swinging back and forth. Ganondorf deflected each shot easily, stabbing forward and catching Link on the cheek, thrusting again in rapid fire and catching him on his shoulder. Link grunted and fell back.

Ganondorf laughed, throwing his head back. I stepped forward, remembering to take a new breath.

"You see what happens, when you let a child play with men's toys?" Ganondorf called, looking at me. "He can't handle himself, can he? Not that you'll ever get the chance to find out what else he can't handle…"

I took another step forward, throwing my head back and glaring up at him. "Ganondorf!" He looked at me curiously. "The baby wasn't yours." Both men looked at me in shock. Ganondorf growled and stepped forward. "What?"

I lifted my chin. "I killed it. To keep my country, my body, and any children I might have safe from you. I will not let you win."

Ganondorf looked at Link. Link looked at me with something unreadable on his face. I swallowed, but kept my head up. Ganondorf growled, with a deeper, louder roar building under it. Link scrambled to his feet, swinging his sword and catching Ganondorf off guard. Ganondorf could not deflect the first shot, and Link got him on the neck, up high and near his ear. Ganondorf growled and knocked the sword off his throat, clutching a hand to his wound. "You got lucky," he snarled, gesturing at Link with his sword.

Link shook his head. "You're underestimating me."

Link took the handle in both hands, hunching down and crouching slightly, watching Ganon with narrowed eyes. Ganondorf growled and stepped forward, swinging awkwardly with one hand. Link deflected easily, swinging in a fast arc. It struck Ganondorf's armor, catching one of the ties and slicing it apart. Ganondorf stepped forward and slashed into the air, but Link jumped back effortlessly, getting better, focusing himself into the blade. They stepped closer together, swords clanging in the air and ringing like rusted bells. Link took a chance, jumping and whipping around in a circle. The Master Sword took on an energy of its own, glowing with a brilliant white light. The edge of it caught Ganondorf across the face, and he was either too weak or too slow to stop it. He stumbled back several feet, a gash from his right cheekbone, across his nose, and above one eye seeping blood.

Link landed on both feet with a boom that cracked the foundation. His hair floated lightly on some inner essence of himself made manifest, and the Master Sword crackled in the air like static. It was then that I realized my left hand had its own mystic energy, glowing brightly from within. As did the two men on the platform.

Ganondorf growled, and the sound was deeper and more menacing than before. A darkness radiated from him, and he stepped forward with a rattling noise like thunder. Someone stepped up behind me; it was Ruto. A dribble of her dark blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. We looked at each other, and she nodded once, her face stern. Darunia stepped up to my other side, glowering at the scene ahead. A wolf prowled near my feet, baring its teeth and growling. The fight grew more intense. Link's attacks became more specific, calculated. Ganondorf's aim was getting worse, and in the end he was just randomly slashing, trying to knock Link down any way he could. Link ducked effortlessly, and with one sudden, sharp movement, he plunged the Master Sword upwards, driving it through Ganondorf's throat and out the back of his head. He held it there for a beat, blood running down along the blade edge and seeping into his gloves. With quickness, he ripped it back out, pulling Ganondorf to his knees. Blood poured from his throat and head, down to the ground. Ganondorf's eyes rolled back until the whites were all that showed, and then he collapsed. Link stepped back several steps, waiting. We waited for ten minutes. But the dead body was just that now. Link relaxed his stance, twirling the Master Sword until it was clean, and sheathing it. I walked up to him cautiously, my clothes splattered with blood. "Link…" I asked softly, folding my hands together. He looked at me, wiping some blood from his face with his hand. "Zelda…"

I rushed towards him and hugged him tight, breaking into tears.


	28. Chapter 28

It took us time to clean up.

Ganondorf's body was burned, according to Gerudo custom. Because our ceremony was entirely of his country's custom, our marriage was never officially recognized by Hyrule, and it was absolved effortlessly. I found my rings during clean up, and threw them onto the fire when we burned his body. I watched the shining metal melt, my face hard. When all that remained were ashes, they were collected into an elaborate vase, and presented to the woman leader of the Gerudo. She did not take kindly to his murder, but appreciated that he was cremated to their customs. We struck an uneasy truce when they found out the extent of his insanity.

My doctor and my tailor from the dark days in his castle became officially appointed to my court. The guard that had provided me with a ray of hope in a dark time was knighted, and placed in my new elite guard. The priest was returned, unharmed, to Gerudo. I could not say the same for the bridesmaids who knew the extent of my tortures and did nothing to help, or the farmer that betrayed us. They were executed.

The flow of the ocean shifted, and the Zora began a slow recovery. Ruto married a Zora king from a neighboring kingdom, and I stood as her maid of honor at the wedding. Well, floated.

The colony of Dodongo moved away from Death Mountain, albeit many had to be slaughtered first. Though we never again saw the Kokiri, I would see wolves prowling the outskirts of the forest now and again, or a white, shimmering form with massive antlers, hiding amongst the trees.

Link's parents were never found. We held a funeral for them, under a massive tree near his home.

My castle was rebuilt, smaller this time, but with better foundation, and larger windows and gardens. I wanted to see as much of the sun as I could. We rebuilt the Temple of Time, with stronger doors, and a different method of opening the door to the Master Sword pedestal. Link went to replace the Master Sword, but it would no longer fit in the pedestal. "The goddesses must have a plan," I murmured the day we tried it. We gave the keys to our allies; Ruto, Darunia, and the leader of the Kokiri. "Keep it safe, and hand it down to only the new leader, and only to an ally of the Royal Family," I decreed to each of them. They swore to keep the agreement. We planted the Master Sword in the garden in a special-made pedestal, with priests murmuring incantations and prayers over it so that only a chosen descendant could take it up again.

When the castle was being rebuilt, I found my diary and the tiny scroll of paper, and burned them. Slowly, I rebuilt my court. Spring came, and the sun warmed the ground, bringing grass and trees growing again. Wild animals and people began to traverse the large area again, and the market slowly pieced itself back together inside the castle walls.

I told a trusted lady's-maid, who had survived the period of horror, what Ganondorf had done. Embarrassed, I cried in front of her nearly every night. She was an older woman, like a mother figure, and she stroked my hair and comforted me. The only advice she offered was that I needed to tell Link, if I still hoped to marry him. But I couldn't do it. He and I spoke little after the battle. At first, it was under the excuse that we were both busy putting the country back together, but after that, it was obvious we were avoiding each other.

One night, I managed to pin him in the gardens. I was walking with my guards, but I dismissed them when I caught Link sitting alone on a bench, whistling a song to a large bird that had settled on his shoulder. The bird flew off, and I approached him. "Room for one more?" I asked quietly.

"Oh, your majesty, I was just leaving." He rose off the bench, and I clenched my hands into fists.

"Sit, Link." He hesitated, but did as asked. I sat next to him, reaching over and taking his hand. At first, his grip was lax, but then he squeezed my hand tight, and I turned towards him. "Link, I need to tell you what happened to me."

"I know what happened, your majesty. You were held against your will, and-

But he was not meeting my eyes.

"We need you to know what happened!" I shouted. Link hunched up, finally turning and looking at me. He looked like a trapped predator. I took both his hands in mine, holding them tight. "Link. I did not know that it was your child until after…"

He swallowed, and lowered his gaze. I sucked in a deep breath, shuddering. "Link… I was … raped. Repeatedly. By him, and, when I fell pregnant, I thought…" The tears were already starting up again, and I closed my eyes tight. "I felt… like I was being punished by the Goddesses for not saving Hyrule sooner, for abandoning it in the first place."

Link opened his mouth to argue. "That wasn't your fault at all, it-

I shook my head to stop him. "I… When I found out I was pregnant, the only thing I thought was that it was Ganondorf's, and that it would turn out to be evil, just like him. I had already failed my country once, the last thing I wanted to do was fail it again by allowing such an evil to be born."

Link held my hands tight, nodding. "I understand."

I sobbed, and he used his sleeve to wipe away my tears. "But it was our child, and I am sorry. He would have tainted it any way he could have, and I could not risk that happening to us again so soon. I want… I love you, Link, I've loved you since we met, and I want to… I want to be your queen. I want us to rule together, to bring Hyrule to a new age, and… even if I'm damaged, even if I'm… ruined, and filthy, I hope that you… would do me the honor of being my king."

Link let go of my hands and cupped my face in my hands, kissing my forehead. "My lady, my queen, my beloved. You're not tarnished. You're pure, and you're a good person." I smiled through my tears, looking into his eyes. "I want to face the future with you. I want to be by your side. And we are young, we can always have more children." I curled against his chest, shuddering with my sobs. I did feel better after telling him, and knowing that he still loved me, that he still accepted me, and had forgiven me.

We made love that night, taking it slow. It was on a new bed, in a redesigned room, with clean sheets. But I had to undress myself, and Link had to lay passively on the bed, letting me be in control. I trembled as I kissed him, touching his face, his hair, his hands, toying with the light, soft curls of hair growing on his chest. He watched me with his predator's eyes, patient and gentle. His fingers traced the scar on my side, and then his lips followed their path. I lost myself to the light touches of his hands, the wetness of his mouth on mine, his fingers gently tracing my bony hips. I'd lost so much weight, and struggled with eating, even though the food no longer tasted spicy. ("A simple aphrodesiac herb, probably," the doctor noted, when I told him of what I'd tasted and how I'd reacted. "He was drugging you to arousal.")

Link did not need tricks to make me want him. He only touched me where I asked, slow and hesitant, watching my face for the slightest flicker of fear. I moaned with my release, Link's hand doing all the work. "I love you," he murmured to my neck, carefully pressing his erection against me. I flinched and moved away. "I'm sorry," I gasped, closing my eyes. "No, no, it's okay," he whispered, laying down next to me and hugging me close. "I will wait as long as you need me to."

We married in the summer, in a discreet ceremony. I smiled with tears in my eyes as we put our rings on each other's fingers. The country had still not recovered, and the temples remained, though their doors were now sealed with keys that we entrusted only to the leaders of the nearest town to the temple. But the wedding helped in a big way, I think, to unite the people of Hyrule, and to band us together against the future perils we would face.

Because Ganondorf was waiting, and he would return. But we would be ready.


End file.
